When Antigua and Barbuda’s Parliament gathered for its inaugural sitting of the freshly elected legislative term on Monday, a key ceremonial and procedural milestone unfolded: Osbert Frederick secured another term as Speaker of the House of Representatives without any opposition. This opening sitting formally inaugurated the new Lower House, coming nearly three weeks after the island nation’s April 30 general election that reshaped its national legislative body.
The election outcome that preceded this sitting delivered a decisive mandate to the incumbent Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party, which claimed a fourth consecutive term in government after a landslide victory at the polls. Monday’s session focused on laying the groundwork for the new legislative session, with lawmakers moving forward to select a Deputy Speaker and address other routine procedural business. All these preparations are leading up to the formal ceremonial opening of Parliament and the delivery of the Throne Speech, which is scheduled to take place on May 26.
Notably, two key opposition figures were missing from the opening sitting. Jamale Pringle, the leader of the parliamentary opposition, and Trevor Walker, the Member of Parliament representing Barbuda, confirmed over the weekend that they would be out of the country and unable to attend. In an official statement released on Sunday, Pringle explained that he had traveled to the United States to accompany his underage daughter for a required medical procedure. Walker, for his part, noted that he was attending to urgent personal family matters. Both legislators have confirmed that they will complete their mandatory Oath of Allegiance during the next scheduled ordinary sitting of the Lower House when they return to the nation.