Ms. Pennelope Beckles was elected to the House of Representatives as a Member of the 12th Republican Parliament in August of 2020. Prior to this, she most recently served as the Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate in the 10th Parliament between June 2010 and December 2013.
Ms. Beckles first entered Parliament in 1995 as an Opposition Senator. She then served as the representative for the constituency of Arima between 2000 and 2010. Ms. Beckles held various portfolios, having been Minister of Social Development, Minister of Culture and Tourism, as well as Minister of Public Utilities and the Environment.
Ms. Beckles was elected Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives on December 17, 2007 at the Ceremonial Opening of the 1st Session of the 9th Parliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. An attorney-at-law by profession, Ms. Beckles is the first woman to have ever been elected Deputy Speaker in the history of the Parliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
A past student of St. Raphael’s Grade School and a graduate of St Joseph’s Convent, San Fernando, Ms. Beckles pursued her tertiary level education at the University of the West Indies, attending both the St. Augustine and Cave Hill campuses where she graduated with honours. She then moved on to the Hugh Wooding Law School where she obtained her L.E.C, Ms. Beckles is attached to the Chambers of Theodore R Guerra, S.C. & Associates.
Not only is Ms. Beckles a resident of Arima, but her deep involvement in two of the area’s community organizations, namely the Arima Foundation for the Advancement of Women and Children and the Santa Rosa Heights Community Group, exemplify her commitment to the future of her community.
Outside of her Parliamentary and Ministerial portfolios, Ms. Beckles’ political experience includes Vice Chairmanship of the Arima Constituency Group, Membership of the PNM’s General Council, and serving as Public Relations Officer of the National Women’s League.