The Executive Council of the Falkland Islands is the policy making body of the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

of the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...

, exercising executive power by advising the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

. It has an equivalent role to that of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. The first Executive Council for the Falklands was inaugurated on 2 April 1845 by Governor

Richard Moody Richard Clement Moody Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Military Merit of France (13 February 1813 – 31 March 1887) was a British governor, engineer, architect and soldier. He is best known for being the founder and the first Lieutenant ...

Powers

The powers, function, membership and tenure of the Executive Council is prescribed in Chapter V of the

Falkland Islands Constitution The Falkland Islands Constitution is a predominantly codified constitution documented primarily within the ''Falkland Islands Constitution Order 2008'', a statutory instrument of the United Kingdom. The Constitution, in its present form, was made o ...

, which came into force on 1 January 2009. The executive authority of the Falkland Islands is vested in the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

, and that authority is exercised on his behalf by the Governor of the Falkland Islands, who acts on the advice of the Executive Council. The constitution gives the governor the power to act against the advice of the Executive Council, however, governors are required to immediately report the matter to His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom with an explanation. The Executive Council can set up a Committee to which it can delegate any of its powers, such as the selecting of a

Chief Executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

, although any decision made by the Committee has to be approved by the Executive Council. Meetings of the Executive Council take place at the discretion of the Governor, although the Governor is obliged to hold a meeting if two or more Councillors request one. Council meetings normally take place monthly.

Membership

At the first meeting of the

Legislative Assembly of the Falkland Islands The Legislative Assembly of the Falkland Islands is the unicameral legislature of the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands. The Legislative Assembly replaced the Legislative Council (which had existed since 1845) when the new Con ...

after every general election, the Legislative Assembly elects three of its members to the Executive Council, of whom at least one must represent a Stanley constituency and at least one must represent a

Camp Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

constituency. The

term of office A term of office, electoral term, or parliamentary term is the length of time a person serves in a particular elected office. In many jurisdictions there is a defined limit on how long terms of office may be before the officeholder must be subject ...

for an Executive Council member is twelve months, after which time the Legislative Assembly elects new members to the Council, although Councillors are permitted to seek re-election to the Council as often as they like. Membership of the Council can end early if a Councillor resigns, or if an elected member ceases to also be a member of the Legislative Assembly. An elected Councillor member can be forcibly removed from the Council by a resolution in the Legislative Assembly. Also, membership is revoked automatically if a Councillor is absent for three consecutive Council meetings without permission. There are also two

ex officio member An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

s of the Council, the

and the Director of Finance of the Falkland Islands, although they are barred from voting in the Council's meetings. The Commander of the British Forces in the South Atlantic Islands and the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

of the Falkland Islands are also permitted to attend Council meetings, although they are not members of the Council and cannot vote. The Governor is also present at meetings of the Executive Council, acting as

chairperson The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

Elected members of the Executive Council during the current 2013 to 2017 Legislative Session

November 2013 to November 2014:

Mike Summers Michael Victor Summers (born 1952) is a Falkland Islands politician who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Stanley constituency from 2011 to 2017. He was previously a Member of the Legislative Council from 1996–2009. ...

( Stanley), Phyllis Rendell (

), Dr. Barry Elsby (Stanley) November 2014 to November 2015: Mike Summers (Stanley), Phyllis Rendell (Camp), Michael Poole (Stanley) November 2015 to November 2016: Mike Summers (Stanley), Phyllis Rendell (Camp),

Jan Cheek Janet Lynda Cheek (née Biggs; born 1948) is a Falkland Islands politician who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Stanley constituency from 2009 to 2017. Cheek won re-election in 2013 but stepped down from the assembly at t ...

(Stanley) November 2016 to November 2017: Mike Summers (Stanley), Roger Edwards (Camp), Jan Cheek (Stanley)

Oath or affirmation

Under section 64 of the constitution, before taking part in any proceedings of the Executive Council, Councillors must take the oath or affirmation of secrecy. The wording is specified in Annex B to the Constitution:

References

* * * {{cite web , url=http://www.falklands.gov.fk/assembly/documents/The%20Falkland%20Islands%20Constitution%20Order%202008.pdf , title=The Falkland Islands Constitution Order 2008 , date=1 January 2009 , publisher=falklands.gov.fk , access-date=2010-06-07 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816203434/http://www.falklands.gov.fk/assembly/documents/The%20Falkland%20Islands%20Constitution%20Order%202008.pdf , archive-date=16 August 2011 1845 establishments in South America Politics of the Falkland Islands Privy councils