Governor Sarah Tucker will officially demit office on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, after serving three impactful years as Montserrat’s top UK official. In a wide-ranging exit interview with Discover Montserrat, Governor Tucker reflected on her time on the island, her proudest accomplishments, the challenges that remain, and the lessons she’s learned about leadership, service, and Montserrat itself.
She admitted to being really emotional as she and her team work to prepare for her departure. Saying goodbye to people “is incredibly hard in a place like Montserrat. It’s the first time I’ve worked somewhere overseas where you know so many people and you’re so involved in so many people’s lives and you know how they work or their families… But everything has a season. It’s time to move on.”
A Different Kind of Governor
Appointed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tucker was the first governor to serve under the newly merged Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), which combined the UK’s aid and foreign affairs departments.
The merging of roles under the FCDO required a new kind of leadership. “I was the first governor to come in that was fully FCDO. So I think that’s been a big challenge. In my first year people wondered why on Earth I was turning up to look at the programmes. Why did I have an opinion on this and why would we be talking about it? Before a new governor comes in, the UK write to the government here and ask them what sort of person that they want. And I know it was a request that as Montserrat has all these commercial projects, we’re going to need someone that has a commercial background and programme knowledge. Hence that’s why I was selected to come and represent His Majesty. So doing both roles, as the governor and also the programme stuff that used to be under DFID, that was quite challenging for me. It’s a big job. There’s the breadth of detail that you’ve got to get into. It’s the best job I’ve ever had – and I’ve had some big jobs. My best job and probably the hardest too.”
She acknowledged her accomplishments were a result of collaboration. “We’ve done lots of work working closely with government on CIPREG projects. We are about to break ground on the hospital project and with other projects there’s been some challenges in delivering them. But the way that’s progressed and the additional funding that we’ve got which is non ODA is a really positive sign.”
She praised the work of the Attorney General’s Office on the CFATF evaluation. “It is just amazing that we are at the stage to have a successful evaluation. We’ve got a bit of work to do, but for a small territory with a small number of people, the amount of work that we galvanised together and pulling in the new legislation – it was a partnership with government to get all of that in place. In terms of lasting impact for Montserrat, I think things like the CFATF make a big difference.”
Mental health and child safeguarding were also key focus areas. “I’ve been a real champion of mental health and safeguarding and I know it’s a difficult conversation to have and it’s very hard for people, but I’m really proud of the work that my team, all of the ministries and the police have done together. We now have a safeguarding board and we’ve got measures in place. We might see an increase in cases. That doesn’t mean things have got worse. It just means people are now confident to come forward. This is not a Montserrat issue. This is a global issue. I’m really proud of the fact that safeguarding is front and centre and supported by the government, the premier and the ministers to make sure that we take this forward and we make that Montserrat is the safest place for everybody.”
The Royal Montserrat Police Service has also seen changes under her watch. “We’ve got a fantastic police team down there and they’re working really hard and making progress. We had officers from Bermuda and Cayman come in and we’re sending people off to other police services to learn. So I think that greater network across the OTs is important.”
Building Strong UK Relationships
“There’s a real partnership approach and a real respect for the work that gets done here with the team in finance – how they manage the funding and the projects and programmes, and there’s a recognition for how hard it is to get those things done. But we’re getting the support across Whitehall. You now see Ministry of Justice working with us. You see Department for health working with us on UKHSA. We’ve now got education and Suffolk twinned with us and working on social services. We have got the full Whitehall package, supporting Montserrat.
“We have an internal meeting, which I call Friends of Montserrat, where we bring in all the different working level people across Whitehall. Most of them will say it quietly but I’ll say it loudly, Montserrat is their favourite OT because it’s beautiful, and because the people are lovely and because everybody welcomes them when they come. Having that network is fantastic for us as long as we’re clear on what we need, then I think the support is there,” Governor Tucker said confidently.
Her successor, Harriet Cross, has already begun preparing for the role. “Harriet and I are in touch. I’m talking to her all about Montserrat, about how lovely it is, where to go for dinner, but also about all the big projects and the people that we’ve got in the public service and how that’s developing. Harriett and I are trying to make sure there’s a firm hand off and she can come in and be aware of everything that’s going on and be able to continue to support. She’s incredibly keen and enthusiastic and looking forward to being here and I’m quite jealous of the fact that she’s going to be here for her tenure. I think she’s going to be great. She’s lovely and lots of fun. I’m sure everyone’s going to love her.”
Facing Future Challenges
Tucker discussed the implications of Montserrat potentially graduating from ODA status. “It’s a really tricky qualification to have at the moment, which is done by the (OECD Development Assistance Committee) DAC in Geneva. It’s a team of countries of which the UK is part that vote in terms of where people sit and they assess and there’s a very set criteria and I know lots of governments are looking at this. It doesn’t take into account SIDS, small island developing states and the vulnerability index is not in there. It doesn’t include the climate challenges that we have. I hope that will change, but in the meantime, I’m afraid the way it’s classified means it’s likely that we will qualify. It’s because of the funding that’s coming in all the projects and all the programmes that’s giving you that outcome and it’s a difficult one. The answer isn’t to invest less so that you don’t get qualified out of ODA. It doesn’t represent what’s happening on the ground. In a nanosecond, with the volcano, with hurricanes, we are very vulnerable here, so we need that continued investment.”
She reiterated that the UK Government has committed to continued support of Montserrat. A good example is the recent commitment of the £14.5 million additional funding needed on the hospital construction project which came from the UK Treasury and not ODA. “That’s a real testament to all the work that happens here. And the way that [Permanent Secretary of Health] Camille and her team at the hospital and the FS and his team have done in terms of demonstrating that the governance structures are in place and it’s tight. I am all over them saying please make sure we keep it tight. The funding demonstrates that the commitment is already there before we’ve graduated out of ODA.”
The governor also praised recent partnerships that will provide not only financial but technical and inter-agency support for the island. These include continued work with UKHSA, the West Midlands Trust with mental health and other medical training, the Ministry of Justice and FCDO.
She noted that UK support often goes beyond money. “It’s more about capability and capacity… If the ask is there and we can package it in the right way, then there is a route to get it.”
The outgoing governor said regular staff exchanges and capacity building have also been priorities. “Later this year Tori Greenaway from the Ministry of Finance will go to the UK to work with FCDO on a live project. I’d love it if our permanent secretaries, directors could go and work in BVI or other OTs for a couple of months… You just get different perspectives but still keep that sort of Caribbean culture.”
Inclusion
“I’ve tried really hard to be part of the community. Everyone does a lot of things, but I would like to get everyone to be a bit more inclusive. We’re a changing territory and we’ve got lots of different nationalities here, North America and UK, American, we’ve got cross Caribbean, we need to work together for the success of Montserrat and I hope that whatever age, sexuality, nationality anybody is that we can just welcome everybody as long as they’re good people and they’re here for the good of Montserrat and they enjoy being here. Then let’s welcome them and make sure that we all work together. I hope I’ve simply done everything we can to try and be as inclusive as possible. And I hope that will be a lasting message that people take forward.
“The Speaker and the work that he does with the youth parliaments across the OT is actually talking about inclusion and how our youngsters are not feeling as part of the community. And I think that’s really sad and I think for Montserrat, if we really want to keep this island in a beautiful place with our people, then we need to make them feel welcome and know that this is their home no matter if they go off and come back. That’s fine. They’re always welcome here, no matter who they are and what they are. I hope that I’ve at least started the conversation.”
Final Reflections
While she received feedback that people missed the traditional gatherings, she had other priorities. “I like to put the money into other things, like the children’s playground or developing basketball or working with the Girl Guides… We don’t have the funding that we used to… But I’ve tried to put it into something that can have a lasting impact.”
Governor Tucker hopes her tenure leaves a legacy of urgency and action. “I hope that I’ve instilled an urgency in terms of doing things because everything’s really hard. And the longer you take to do something, the harder it is… To not do things in haste, but to keep pushing.”
“Montserrat is the gift that keeps on giving. Whenever new team members joined and they would say ‘I didn’t finish my work.’ I would say you’re never going to finish your work. And I think once we understand that, this is an island that’s developing and growing. And it feels like it’s on the cusp of really taking off again, then you should never finish. You should always go thinking, gosh, I wish I’d done more. So there’s loads I wish I’d done, but I’m pleased that we’ve got as much done as we did. I think we have to be.”
Governor Tucker and Howard will leave island with a ceremonial farewell on Tuesday afternoon. While she would not disclose what her next career move will be, she said a debrief in the UK and a six-week holiday to spend time with her three sons and daughter-in-law are in her immediate future. With Montserrat very much on her mind, she plans to sneak in a visit to Guernsey, not only to see her parents but to visit the Guernsey Music Service which most recently donated instruments to the Small Beginnings group.
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