Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam is a British lawyer and civil servant who has served as

Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands The governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands is the representative of the British monarch in the United Kingdom's British Overseas Territory of Turks and Caicos Islands. The Governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British gov ...

since 29 June 2023. She served as

Governor of Anguilla The governor of Anguilla is the representative of the monarch in the British Overseas Territory of Anguilla. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Government of the United Kingdom. The governor is the highest authority ...

between 2021 and 2023.

Civil service

Daniel-Selvaratnam is of

Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, form the plurality in the Eastern Province a ...

descent. She was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1999, and earned an

LL.M. A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...

in Public International Law from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

in 2000. She completed her

pupillage A pupillage, in England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Kenya, Malaysia, Pakistan and Hong Kong, is the final, vocational stage of training for those wishing to become practising barristers. Pupillage is similar to an apprenticeship, during which ba ...

during 2000–2001 at 9 King's Bench Walk and 1

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

Lane. From 2004 to 2007, Daniel-Selvaratnam was a policy advisor at the

Department for Constitutional Affairs The Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) was a United Kingdom government department. Its creation was announced on 12 June 2003; it took over the functions of the Lord Chancellor's Department. On 28 March 2007 it was announced that the ...

. She worked in different capacities at the

Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

from 2007 to 2015: Private Secretary to the

Minister of State for Justice The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is headed by the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor (a combined position). Its stated priorities are to reduce re-offending ...

(2007–2010), Secretary to the Omand Review (2010), Deputy Head of Offender Management Strategy (2010–2011), and Deputy Director of Strategy and Change for HM Courts and Tribunals Service (2011–2015). Changing departments, she served for two years as Director of Strategy and Change for the

Insolvency Service The Insolvency Service is an executive agency of the Department for Business and Trade with headquarters in London. It has around 1,700 staff, operating from 22 locations across the UK. The Insolvency Service administers compulsory company liq ...

. In 2017, she joined the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister and Cabinet ...

as a Director for the

Grenfell Tower Inquiry The Grenfell Tower Inquiry was a British public inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire, which killed 72 people and destroyed Grenfell Tower on 14 June 2017. It was ordered by Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Theresa May on the ...

Governor

Daniel-Selvaratnam's appointment as

was announced on 28 November 2020; she would be the second female governor of the territory after Christina Scott. She arrived in

Anguilla Anguilla is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Sa ...

on 15 January 2021, and began her duties remotely due to the 15-day quarantine mandate. She attended her swearing-in ceremony over video link on 18 January 2021. On 21 January 2021, she addressed a meeting of the Executive Council, and later met the opposition members of the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible g ...

. On 26 January 2021, she swore in a new magistrate, Piyumini Weeratunga, who had previously served as a magistrate in

Montserrat Montserrat ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, wit ...

. After completing her quarantine, Daniel-Selvaratnam toured the Princess Alexandra Hospital and the "hotel belt". She followed up these visits with an island-wide tour. In each district, she met with the representing MP and local residents; she also discussed the upcoming COVID-19 vaccine rollout. On 15 December 2022, the Foreign, Commonwealth, & Development Office announced that Daniel-Selvaratnam would be succeeding Nigel Dakin as

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

of the Turks and Caicos Islands in June 2023.

References

{{s-end Living people Governors of Anguilla Governors of the Turks and Caicos Islands Alumni of the University of London British people of Sri Lankan Tamil descent Private secretaries in the British Civil Service Civil servants in the Cabinet Office Civil servants in the Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom) Civil servants in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills British barristers Year of birth missing (living people)