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Structure of Government
The Structure and composition of Parliament:
The structure of government in the Commonwealth Caribbean is built on the Westminster
model of parliamentary democracy- tracing back to the 13th century. This model allows for a
Bi-cameral (two chambers) legislative body. In the Caricom countries, the two chambers
are:
(1) Upper house (Senate)
(2) Lower House (House of Representatives)
In Britain, the upper house is called the House of Lords and the lower house is called the
House of Commons. Trinidad, St Lucia, Barbados, Antigua, Grenada are just a few of the
Commonwealth Caribbean countries that have a bi-cameral parliament.
If the Legislature has only one body, it is then described as a Unicameral Legislature.
Dominica, Guyana, St. Kitts-Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines all have
unicameral parliaments