MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

High-level comings and goings in the Falkland Islands

The meeting of the Falkland Islands Legislative Council on Friday was the last to be attended in his official capacity, by the Islands' long-serving Attorney General, David Lang QC, who is shortly to retire.

Although the Attorney General is always present at the meetings of the Islands Legislative Council as an ex-officio member and is invited to advise on questions of legal procedure from time to time and to answer members' questions, it is normally only the eight elected members of the council who are allowed to speak to the Motion of Adjournment, which winds up each session. On Friday, however, the Speaker of the House asked members' permission to allow the Attorney General to speak.

Mr Lang, who will be retiring in the Falkland Islands, where he has been Attorney General since 1987, told the House that he had mixed emotions about retirement. Being Attorney General was one of the most interesting jobs in the legal world and he was sad to be leaving it, although he was on the whole happy to be "going into the golden sunset of retirement."

Mr Lang has been Attorney General in four other territories, besides the Falkland Islands, over a period of nearly thirty years, which he considers may constitute some kind of record. He will be succeeded by Melanie Chilton, QC, who is currently the Falkland Islands Senior Crown Counsel.

Also allowed to speak to the Adjournment Debate of Legislative Council was the retiring Commander of British Forces in the South Atlantic, Commodore Ian Moncrieff. Councillor Dr Andrea Clausen presented both him and the Attorney General with Legislative Council ties.

Saturday saw the departure from the Falkland Islands of the former General Manager of the Development Corporation (FIDC), Mr. Julian Morris. Mr.Morris will be succeeded as General Manager by Mark Brunet, whose appointment was announced on Friday.

According to a press release from the Development Corporation, Mr.Brunet is currently Director of a flagship business enterprise support service covering West Sussex, eastern Surrey and parts of East Sussex and Kent which is operated by the Sussex Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise under a contract with the South East England Development Agency. He has also recently been involved in projects with a range of international partners and has extensive experience of working with small business to maximise growth and profitability.

Subject to the completion of the usual pre-contract formalities, Mark and his wife, Ursula, expect to arrive in The Falklands towards the end of January 2007

Chair of the Falklands Development Board, Councillor Dr Andrea Clausen was reported in the release as saying "I'm very pleased that we have been able to secure Mark's services and am confident that his skills and experience will add another dimension to the first class team that we now have in place at FIDC. I look forward to welcoming him here and to working with him to further improve the success of our economy."

John Fowler (Mercopress) Stanley