Robin Yearwood

Yearwood was first elected to Parliament in 1976, for the seat of St. Phillips North, which he still holds.[1] He entered Cabinet-level politics on 29 May 1980, when he was appointed Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries in the ALP government of Vere Bird.[2] He retained this position after the 1984 election,[3] and in 1986 led the construction of a new agricultural research laboratory, using equipment donated by China under a 1983 economic and technical cooperation pact.[4] A cabinet reshuffle on 1 January 1987 saw Yearwood replace Vere Bird, Jr., the Prime Minister's son, as Minister of Aviation, Public Information and Public Utilities, ceding his Agriculture portfolio to Hilroy Humphreys.[5] This followed controversy over Bird's construction of a new airport, which the opposition charged was "grossly inflated" in cost; retired Grenadian judge Sir Archibald Nedd was appointed to investigate the project and look for signs of wrongdoing.[6] This scandal threatened to topple the government, with eight ministers, including the Deputy Prime Minister, arguing that Vere Bird should have his son fired.[7]

Retaining his seat in the 1989 election, seeing off a challenge from Junie de Shalto,[8] he remained Minister of Aviation.[9] Following the 1991 budget proposal, described by members of the opposition as "illegal and unconstitutional", Yearwood was one of seven ALP Ministers to call for the Prime Minister's resignation;[10] despite the failure of this campaign, he retained his position in the Cabinet.[11] As Aviation Minister, Yearwood spearheaded a $2.8 million grant to LIATairline in an attempt to boost its recovery: a $1.4 million bank overdraft and a $1.4 million government loan.[12]

On 9 September 2002, Yearwood was appointed Deputy Prime Minister of Antigua by Lester Bird in a reorganisation of the government aimed at tackling a series of corruption scandals; he retained his Aviation, Public Information and Public Utilities portfolio.[1] He announced that his focus would be on rebuilding Antigua's economy, switching from a reliance on the failing banana industry to a focus on tourism.[13] Following the resignation of five government members in protest at Bird's leadership, Bird he announced he was reshuffling the Cabinet, and handed Yearwood the position of Minister of Finance.[14] As Minister of Finance, Yearwood attended the 2003 International Monetary Fund conference as the Antiguan delegate,[15] and also met the Inter-American Economic Council's delegation when it visited Antigua in January 2004.[16]

The ALP lost their majority in the 2004 general election, and the United Progressive Party (UPP) under Baldwin Spencer took 14 of the 17 seats in Parliament.[17] Yearwood, as one of the few remaining ALP Parliamentarians, became Leader of the Opposition.[18] Appointed Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Yearwood strongly criticised the UPP budget, which was later approved.[19] In 2005 he, Lester Bird and Hugh Marshall, Sr. were charged with an illegal land sale while in government, with the UPP administration alleging that government property had been sold to a company owned by the three at below-market value.[20] In 2006, following a letter from three ALP Parliamentarians accusing him of "fuelling division within the party", Yearwood was removed as Leader of the Opposition and replaced by Steadroy Benjamin.[21] Despite this fall from grace he remains in Parliament, seeing off a challenge from Elmore Charles to retain his seat in the 2009 election.[22]