Parliament of the Bahamas: Difference between revisions

{{InfoboxShort description|Bicameral legislature of The Bahamas}}

| native_name_langname = Parliament of theThe Bahamas

| transcription_namenative_name_lang = Parliament of theThe Bahamas

| coa_pic legislature = Coat of arms[[14th ofBahamian Bahamas.svgParliament]]

| coa_alt =

| foundation = {{start date and age|df=y|1729|3|4|p=1|br=1}}

| houses = [[Parliament of the Bahamas#Senate|Senate]]<br>[[Bahamas House of Assembly|House of Assembly]]

| leader1 = [[ElizabethCharles IIIII]]

| election1 = 68 FebruarySeptember 19522022

| leader2 = Sir [[CorneliusCynthia A. SmithPratt]]

| election2 = 281 JuneSeptember 20192023

| leader3 = [[MildredLashell Hall-WatsonAdderley]]

| party3 = [[FreeProgressive NationalLiberal MovementParty|FNMPLP]]

| election3 = 6 5October December 20192021

| leader4 = Dewitt[[Patricia Halson MoultrieDeveaux]]

| party4 = [[FreeProgressive NationalLiberal MovementParty|FNMPLP]]

| election4 = 246 MayOctober 20172021

| membersleader5_type = [[Prime Minister of the = 55Bahamas|Prime ParliamentariansMinister]]

| house2 = House's

| structure1 = <!--Bahamas_senate_Diagram.svg-->

| political_groups1 = '''[[Government of the Bahamas|Her Majesty'sHM Government]]'''

*{{Color box|#e30513FFD700|border=darkgraysilver}} [[FreeProgressive NationalLiberal MovementParty|FNMPLP]] (12)

'''[[Opposition (parliamentary)|HM Most Loyal Opposition]]'''

*{{Color box|#FFD700D2232A|border=darkgraysilver}} [[ProgressiveFree LiberalNational PartyMovement|PLPFNM]] (4)

| political_groups2 = '''[[Government of the Bahamas|Her Majesty'sHM Government]]'''

*{{Color box|#e30513FFD700|border=darkgraysilver}} [[FreeProgressive NationalLiberal MovementParty|FNMPLP]] (3432)

'''[[Opposition (parliamentary)|HM Most Loyal Opposition]]'''

*{{Color box|#FFD700e30513|border=darkgraysilver}} [[ProgressiveFree LiberalNational PartyMovement|PLPFNM]] (57)

| voting_system1 = ''Appointed''

| voting_system2 = [[First Past -past-the Post-post]]

| last_election2 = [[2021 Bahamian general election, 2017|1016 MaySeptember 20172021]]

| previous_election2 =

| session_res = 200px300px

The '''Parliament of The Bahamas''' is the [[bicameralism|bicameral]] national [[parliament]] of the [[The Bahamas|Commonwealth of The Bahamas]]. The parliament is formally made up of [[QueenMonarchy of theThe Bahamas|the Queensovereign]] (represented by the [[Governor-General of theThe Bahamas|Governorgovernor-Generalgeneral]]), an appointed Senate, and an elected House of Assembly. It currently sits at the [[Bahamian Parliament Building]] in [[Nassau, Bahamas|Nassau]], the national capital.

The structure, functions, and procedures of the paramentparliament are based on the [[Westminster system]].

Originally inhabited by the [[Lucayan people]], a branch of the [[Arawakan]]-speaking [[Taíno people|Taino]] people, theThe Bahamas were the site of [[Christopher Columbus|Columbus]]' first landfall in the [[New World]] in 1492. Although the Spanish never colonized theThe Bahamas, they shipped the native Lucayans to slavery in [[Hispaniola]]. The islands were mostly deserted from 1513 until 1648, when [[Kingdom of England|English]] colonists from [[Bermuda]] settled on the island of [[Eleuthera]].

In 1670 [[Charles II of England|King Charles II]] granted the islands to the [[LordsLord Proprietorsproprietor|lords proprietors]] of the Carolinas, who rented the islands from the king with rights of trading, tax, appointing [[Governor#British Empire and Commonwealth of Nations|governors]], and administering the country.<ref name="Anglican">{{cite web |year=2009 |url = http://bahamas.anglican.org/history.php|title = Diocesan History|publisher = © Copyright 2009 Anglican Communications Department| access-date = 2009-05-07 }}</ref> The Bahamas became a [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] [[crown colony]] in 1718, when the British clamped down on [[piracy]].

A General Assembly was established in 1729; the [[Bahamian general election, 1729|first elections]] took place in September, and on 29 September 1729 twenty-four members representing the islands of [[New Providence]], [[Eleuthera]], and [[Harbour Island, Bahamas|Harbour Island]] gathered together at the house of Samuel Lawford to form the Assemblyassembly.

The Bahamas legislature has had a bicameral feature since its inception in 1729 as the Governor's Council performed both executive and legislative functions. In 1841 Governor [[Francis Cockburn]] divided Governors Council into two separate councils.: The Executive Council to deal with executive functions and the Legislative councilCouncil to deal with Legislativelegislative functions of the upper house. So inIn 1841 the Bahamian legislature took on more structure, with the Legislative councilCouncil being the superior legislative body and the House of Assembly being the lesser. The Legislative councilCouncil eventually was renamed to the senateSenate in 1964 and became the weaker house while the House of Assembly became the superior legislative body. The Senate is however still known as the upper house and the House of Assembly still as the lower house.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/portal/public/About%20Us/History%20of%20Parliament/!ut/p/b1/vZPLjqM6EIafZR4gjbExNksIhLuBACGwQXTIHQihSSA8_aRHOjqaRXc2o3atLH-lr_SXzGXcmsua4n7cF_3x0hTV5z0T80ABQehISKbIIkD2MXZYTKEswieQPgEEdFeWBerqGIjAjH1H9okBPQH86f_imZL_-sEXR37Zn3BrP8V-MZij5ib5o5rgbR4lmrMzTCeUKq1T9jw-s7YqW7KPwqJY7Jo-mmOyNZBAm1NdpGMoif15493vM7p2iqzSQhIOyIkddlutVoXPa4cwCLHcgMhRF8ONmbYiJ_bhMcrn6_yibGIcHHfM8BKFAKdZI-ZDfrptZ4a7ph3R-waRw9XppBzLxDnstJ3rofdFUtoro062wnUz6Yt0CWdlnyP9PIMlnCZ-mnTstwZiGlL1qrxUN61D8tOYnervc_8M5sXeLC47vtdvw6Z-A28YY0oFiQJMxWd9ppp9F7xnwxfA5-L_AN9t9tsZPfwCAJBjxqXecukTI19iIeIibg2EPDw9WnM6T8sTCYbolE6uqk1AjVE4rQMWaSOTbD7ShBHEvMUi5kTxbXI1AUQs8svVMlZk2fYXvPxCCMWfFpIfFpo_LQzATwvxPxf-9eEEASMsSAJERIQAEsKtTrHEwsEdF_7Q3bbLi0b1qOeVQB0LJ2YnaB7zrJ-JqjWn505CEI39u-RFChgm1VWk2vX7rFXH63UGH878_iiWsVCse8-Nyj6crZZw1DS8sAJIlcw1P_DarbLJVnt8Q22KUNQXiccS1qh5yVZs03TWXrVbMZ7sUxK7FTnY42Y4X5T6YlL7uFl-VEpA8oPVGHmZiLvexZKYdV3tUcmI3z9mJE2KjcNTj5SBSQ2W-hgVsbF79I-mTPUu8EZBshbzfXBt69hV6i29RPChN0CYcla1wq1Z7QJtHh5LgXsS8d3BlrY0Bp7-X4P869dvDtXACw!!/dl4/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/# |title=History of Parliament&nbsp;— House of Assembly&nbsp;— Government |publisher=Bahamas.gov.bs |access-date=2017-05-10}}</ref>

The House of Assembly is the [[lower chamber]]. It consists of 39 members (known as Membersmembers of Parliamentparliament), elected from individual constituencies for five-year terms.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas |url=http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/wcm/connect/0e8ecb04-ec4f-4aa7-afaf-f330efef994b/Chap+5+Parliament.pdf?MOD=AJPERES |access-date=4 August 2020}}</ref> As under the Westminster system, the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time. The House of Assembly performs all major legislative functions. The [[Heads of Government of the Bahamas|Primeprime Ministerminister]] is the leader of the party controlling the majority of the House of Assembly seats. Dewitt [[Halson Moultrie]] was elected the new speaker of the House of Assembly on May 24, 2017.

[[{{main|2021 Bahamian general election, 2017]]:}}

The Senate (upper house) consists of 16 members appointed by the [[Governor General of the Bahamas|Governorgovernor-Generalgeneral]]. Nine of these senators are selected on the advice of the Primeprime Ministerminister, four on the advice of the [[Leader of the Opposition (Bahamas)|leader of the opposition]], and three on the advice of the Primeprime Ministerminister after consultation with the Leaderleader of the Oppositionopposition. The Senate is authorized by the Constitution to pass Billsbills in the same manner as passed by the House or it can make such amendments to the Billbill should it consider it necessary. Those amendments will then have to be approved by the House of Assembly. The Senate may even reject a Billbill outrightly that had been passed by the House. However, if the House passes the Billbill in two successive sessions, and the Senate rejects the Billbill each time, the House of Assembly may send the Billbill directly to the Governorgovernor-Generalgeneral without the Senate having consented to the Billbill.

Parliament is empowered by Article 52(1) of the Constitution to make laws for the peace, order and good government of The Bahamas. The Constitution also empowers Parliament to:

Parliament also maintains oversight of the Governmentgovernment's finances through the Public Accounts Committee. Parliament is also the forum where public policy and matters of national importance are debated.

Article 52(2) of the Constitution empowers Parliament to make laws by the passing of a [[bill (proposed law)|bill]]. Most bills are introduced into Parliament by a Governmentgovernment minister,{{Citation needed|date=September 2011}} but in principle any [[Member of Parliament|parliamentarian]] may introduce a bill. A bill must be passed by both the House of Assembly and Senate, and then must be formally assented to by the Governorgovernor-Generalgeneral, before it becomes law.

There are currently four main classifications of Billsbills: public, money, private member, and private bills.

A bill must pass through a series of stages in order to be passed by each{{Citation needed|date=September 2011}} [[parliamentary chamber|chamber]], with a vote taken at each stage. The procedure in the House of Assembly is as follows:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/portal/public/The%20Government/Legislative/About%20the%20Parliament/!ut/p/b1/vZLLbqMwGEafpQ-QYsx9SYAYk2ACGAJsEJBwCbkTQsjTTzoaaWY0aruZ1l5ZOvan7_xmEiZikkN2a6rs2hwP2e7tnIgpB5CtqrxsIwGIAAfLhbqUTOiwwhOInwB4Z6ngw_tzyKyYKIrhXT_iYWaEaZ2FW3BPsmq070Ow2lZD150auAwq-1r5ZZnzzqLIL5xgSW13yljSa7YKO3xTpLMwtqjGmjERvEVF3I0K6aHXVpnSr7gUylFh8mtSHok2V-wSOcjPD5ekpOJZ0oGz6kwze2zqBHYSW-nYOG01QB4WbcKpwlIudpqe1lnsdqedNevmuzSc3jWXa8HLLwfvleTBZw5XTPIh8vbCT-AjzZ-JJuZxv2HiJyb9gdEQAMwC1fNZF8iEZSgTAT71t-MJP9qH9xwGIbmH_W3igG0wEkpdQmcLSgihRseyNBivxgCpHkObesS-mst16AVTVRMi5_xPoAOp8gzUWHEeCMAH_FcHIsGRnyIkulQFCJDDfncg961K0dIBX97wr0_Du_9_hhaTNPn-dSj2r-BVVkRWkGRekUXA87LEhNuYl3QZDzqmqdZekdjdu5mHO4-qQ61JOHMda2etfUVGqQXPUVU3sdQPEvRk3KN90yOnkCOj0EayBi41J47fSfdmOc99-wpqfBGrOOfxQXAPZxgMRnUz6STSywV3Q3Sdt2GURBeam7ZDrUdxyEq4CTeni4NPbZ2O9U5EO72PFtNEBf2srJ7d_LFhz7tS2yAPNQ_lOs-svaWxwFi3JV1NjEKVg3Yat8GUr4sZnBtnDobSwxhemNM-uC1EzxxY-fce1Jcf_aF9cA!!/dl4/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/ |title=About the Parliament |work=The Government of The Bahamas |access-date=1 September 2011}}</ref>

# A bill is formally introduced into Parliament at the [[first reading]]; this stage is generally a formality, with the bill's [[long title]] being read out and the presiding officer placing the [[motion (parliamentary procedure)|motion]] without debate. After the first reading, the Speakerspeaker orders the bill to be printed; it is then numbered, circulated to members of Parliamentparliament, and made available to the public.

# At the [[committee stage|committal stage]], the entire House of Assembly sits as a [[Committeecommittee of the Wholewhole Househouse]], with the Speakerspeaker leaving the chair and the Deputydeputy Speakerspeaker presiding as Chairpersonchairperson. During this stage the bill is examined clause by clause, with detailed amendments considered. After the bill has been dealt with in Committeecommittee, the Chairpersonchairperson formally reports to the Speakerspeaker the outcome of the Committeecommittee's deliberations, including what amendments have been made.

# The [[third reading]] is the final stage; the motion made by the Speakerspeaker for the third reading is usually agreed to without debate. Onceonce a bill has had its third reading, the Speakerspeaker orders the bill passed, and instructs the Chiefchief Clerkclerk to take the bill to the Senate for its consideration.

Each Billbill consists of five main parts: the long title, the short title, the interpretation clause, the main body of the Billbill and the objects and reasons. The long title is a description of the nature of the Billbill and covers the intent of the Billbill. The Shortshort title follows the long title and labels the Billbill for identification purposes. The short title sometimes also, contains the commencement clause, which states when the Billbill will have legal force. The short title in turn is followed by the interpretation clause, which defines certain words and phrases used in the Billbill. The body of the Billbill consists of all of the other clauses, which contain the provisions of the Billbill, that is, they contain all of the measures that the Billbill is enacting. The objects and reasons is the final part of a Billbill and it seeks to explain in layman’slayman's terms the purpose of the Billbill and the reason why it is necessary.

* [[List of members of the House of Assembly of the Bahamas, 2002–2007|List of members of the House of Assembly of The Bahamas, 2002–2007]]

* [[List of members of the House of Assembly of the Bahamas, 2007–2012|List of members of the House of Assembly of The Bahamas, 2007–2012]]

* [[List of members of the House of Assembly of the Bahamas, 2012–2017|List of members of the House of Assembly of The Bahamas, 2012–2017]]

* [[List of members of the House of Assembly of the Bahamas, 2017–20222017–2021|List of current members of the House of Assembly of theThe Bahamas, 2017–2021]]

* [[List of Presidentspresidents of the Senate of the Bahamas|List of presidents of the Senate of The Bahamas]]

* [[List of Speakersspeakers of the House of Assembly of the Bahamas|List of speakers of the House of Assembly of The Bahamas]]