Sir Alden McLaughlin, KPMG, MBCE, KC, JP, MP
Member of Parliament for Red Bay
A former two-term Premier of the Cayman Islands, Sir Alden McLaughlin, was first elected to the Legislative Assembly in 2000 and has been an MP for over twenty-one years.
He is a Founding Member of the Progressives, which was launched in 2002. With the Progressives winning the Government in 2005, he served as the Minister of Education, Training, Employment, Youth, Sports and Culture from 2005-2009. For his contribution to constitutional development in the Cayman Islands, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II awarded him the M.B.E. in 2010.
In February 2011, Mr McLaughlin became the Political Leader of the Progressives. He was subsequently sworn in as Leader of the Opposition. He was named Premier following the General Elections in May 2013, where the Progressives won the majority of seats. He served as Minister for Home Affairs, Health and Culture from 2013-2017. During this term, he and his Government focused on rebuilding Government finances, growing the economy, and strengthening the relationship with the UK that had been damaged during the previous government.
He was interviewed by the BBC’s HardTalk in 2014 and on the same day presented a Keynote address at Chatham House in London. In 2016 Mr McLaughlin was invited by then Prime Minister David Cameron to speak at the UK’s Anti-Corruption Summit in London. Mr McLaughlin’s Government also started a programme of needed infrastructure modernisation, including modernising and enlarging the Owen Roberts International Airport.
He is the first Premier to serve consecutive terms in the Cayman Islands with his re-election in May 2017. He also served as Minister for Employment, Border Control, Community Affairs, International Trade, Investment, Aviation and Maritime Affairs. His second term continued the work started in the previous term. He ably negotiated with the UK for important changes to our Island’s constitution, including renaming the Legislative Assembly to the House of Parliament. His leadership during the Covid Pandemic was exemplary, with Governor Roper noting that Premier McLaughlin “was the pivotal figure leading Cayman’s response to the Covid pandemic.”
Mr Alden was appointed as Queens Council (Now Kings Council) in September 2021. In January 2022, he was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George and, in February 2023, was officially knighted by King Charles at Windsor Castle.
Sir Alden McLaughlin is a lawyer and a former partner in a local law firm. He is a past president of the Caymanian Bar Association and the Lions Club of Grand Cayman. He is an avid reader, cyclist and farmer. Sir Alden is married and he and Lady Kim they have two sons.
