Tributes paid after former chief minister Laurie Morgan dies
BAILIFF Sir Richard Collas paid tribute to the island's first chief minister yesterday morning, starting the third day of States debate by announcing to the Assembly that former Conseiller and Deputy Laurie Morgan had died on Thursday.
Born in London in 1930, Mr Morgan had started his business life working for Shell and then worked in the local motor trade before he joined the Guernsey branch of merchant bank Ansbacher.
He went on to become the president of the Chamber of Commerce and later was vice-chairman of the Association of Guernsey Banks.
He joined the Post Office Board as a non-States member before being elected as a deputy in 1988.
From there he was elected to various committees and departments, before becoming a member of the then senior States committee, Advisory and Finance.
He was elected a Conseiller both by the States and under the new island-wide system of election, and when the system of government changed he was still president of A&F and so became the first president of the Policy Council and thus the island's first chief minister.
'As an island we can be grateful that someone with his professional expertise, his passion for politics and his desire to improve the politics and economy of his adopted island devoted 20 years of his life to working for us all,' said Sir Richard.
