Mr. Irwin Merritt served in the Senate as a government member from 1971 to 1976. Mr. Merritt passed away on January 16, 2009. Tribute was paid to Mr. Merritt at a sitting of the Senate on Tuesday January 20, 2009 by Sen. the Hon. Conrad Enill, Sen. Wade Mark, Sen. Prof. Ramesh Deosaran and Sen. the Hon. Danny Montano.