Speeches by the Prime Minister

What a blessing it is for us to celebrate and commemorate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as we acknowledge that He is the reason for the season. Take a walk with me down memory lane, as we revisit the old time Jamaican Christmas.   Children are happy, laughing and playing, families coming together, the barrels cleared, carols playing, traditional spirited sorrel and fruitcake being made. Rice and gungo peas being cooked, the aromatic smell of every kind of meat is on the table for the Christmas feast. No one is left out.  Sounds of merriment can be heard in every rural community and every urban place, grand market, Junkanoo and Christmas Service. Nowhere in this narrative, is there any room for violence, our children are safe, returning residents have no fear, no guns are about, peace and love, joy and kindness abound. This is the true, authentic Jamaican Christmas we can enjoy once more, where everyone is looking out for each other, spreading good vibes and good cheer. I am certain that in many parts of Jamaica the nostalgic Christmas scene I described is unfolding, but sadly, in other areas, people are being impacted by violence.…

This is the new day that the Lord has made and we who have been spared to see it, rejoice and are glad in it for we stand on the threshold of new possibilities and opportunities. As a country, we were able to accomplish much in 2018: Our economy continued its recovery and entered its growth phase We have established a flexible exchange rate and record low inflation Business and consumer confidence remain high Record high levels of employment including youth employment Record low unemployment rate Reduction in absolute poverty Rapid expansion in industries such as business process outsourcing, mining, tourism and logistics Record number of infrastructure projects including the Mandela Highway Improvement Project, Constant Spring Road, Three Miles, Ferris to Mackfield and many more Record number of housing starts and developments through the National Housing Trust and the Housing Agency of Jamaica Major gains in improving safety and security in the country which resulted in a 22% reduction in murders for 2018. All these accomplishments were the result of skilful implementation of a strategic plan to transform Jamaica into a modern, peaceful, and prosperous society. We cannot and will not slow our pace, much remains to be done. Peace…

I rise today in this Honourable House to make it unequivocal and clear yet again that the Integrity Commission is an independent Commission of Parliament. Mr. Speaker, let me specifically draw reference to Section 6(3) of the Act which states that: In the exercise of its powers and performance of its functions under this Act, the Commission- (a)   shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority other than the Court by way of judicial review; (b)   shall act independently, impartially, fairly and in the public interest; and (c)   shall have the power to do all such things as it considers necessary or expedient for the purpose of carrying out its functions. Indeed Mr. Speaker, Section 26 of the Integrity Commission Act states that “subject to the provisions of this Act, the Commission shall regulate its own procedure”.  The nature of the establishment of the Commission is that it will act independently. Indeed, anyone who takes the time to read the Act, which is available online will note that Section 28(1) of the said Act clearly indicates that “the Executive Director is appointed by the Governor-General, acting on the recommendation of the Commission”. There…

Mr. Speaker, I use this opportunity to inform this Honourable House of the Government’s plan for another round of the Disaster Mitigation Works. The works have been programmed into the government’s overall mitigation plans, which we have rolled out in three tranches. We have completed two phases of mitigation and three phases of patching so far this year, valued at over $800 million. Mr. Speaker, this round, however, is crucial given the levels of rainfall that all parishes have experienced with some areas being significantly affected by flooding. We had the unfortunate situation in Clarendon for example, where a young boy lost his life due to flooding in the town of May Pen. We intend to use this round of our mitigation programme to target some of these areas that we as representatives of the people know are problematic. Mr. Speaker, this programme will be implemented by the National Works Agency (NWA) and the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA). We have decided to have this programme jointly undertaken by these two agencies as their work complements each other. We know that there is a serious cultural problem as to how we dispose of our garbage. We see it almost…

The Most Honourable Andrew Holness, ON, MP Prime Minister of Jamaica  Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Conference of Executive Management and Heads of Mission   Tuesday, October 9, 2018 Jamaica Pegasus Hotel   Salutations: Senator the Honourable Kamina Johnson Smith, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator the Honourable Pearnel Charles, Jnr, Minister of State Ambassador Marcia Gilbert-Roberts, Permanent Secretary Heads of Diplomatic Mission and Consular Post Under-Secretaries Directors and Staff of the Foreign Ministry Members of the Media   Good morning.  First, let me apologize for my raspy voice. I had to attend a water conference yesterday and I got wet. It is indeed a pleasure for me to join you today to start your Conference and I thank you, Minister, for your warm words of welcome. I wasn’t able to join you yesterday because I had to attend this Water Conference which was in Montego Bay which I got wet  but I managed to get back very late last night because I thought I was absolutely important that I get a chance to eyeball the people who are representing Jamaica overseas and more than that foreign policy is a very important tool of this administration.…

The Most Honourable Andrew Holness ON, MP Prime Minister at the Caribbean Water & Waste Water Association Conference On October 8, 2018   Thank you very much madam master of ceremonies Marline Stephenson Let me apologize for my voice, I got wet. Yes, we're at a water conference so you understand. Mr Alphonsus Daniel, President of the Caribbean Water and Waste Water Association The Honourable Karl Samuda, Minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation with oversight responsibility for water Visiting ministers of government Members of the Diplomatic Corps International organizations and the Consular Corps Senator Aubyn Hill, Chairman of the National Water Commission Members of Parliament Bishop the Honourable Conrad Pitkin, Custos of the parish of St James His Worship the Mayor Councillor Homer Davies, Mayor of Montego Bay And other mayors who are here Mr Mark Barnett, President of the NWC Mr Vincent Sweeney, Head of the United Nations Environment Program Mr Timothee Delebarre, of Vinci Construction Group Jamaica Mr Frank Gutzeit, of Diehl Metering Mrs Doreen Prendergast, Co-Chair of the CWWA2018 Local Organizing Committee Members of staff of the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation Delegations to and partners of the Caribbean Water and…

Presentation by the Hon. Daryl Vaz, MP  on the Government’s measures to regulate specific categories of plastic packaging materials at a Press Conference, Monday, September 17, 2018 in the Banquet Hall at 9 am   It is now universally accepted that Small Island Developing States (SIDS), such as Jamaica, are particularly vulnerable to global environmental challenges, including climate change and marine litter. Our vulnerability to marine plastic litter is even greater given the magnitude of the problem which can have significant negative impacts on economic sectors such as tourism and fisheries which are critical to our economic growth and development. Additionally, improperly disposed of plastics end up in our drains, gullies and waterways after heavy rains, which contribute to flooding and ultimately damage to life and property. Indeed, plastic pollution is one of the biggest threats to the fragile ecosystems of island states.  There are well known cases of plastics being ingested by sea mammals such as whales and turtles as well as sea birds and other sea life leading to fatalities. Scientists have proven that some ten per cent (10%) of the plastic manufactured worldwide end up in our oceans. The majority of the plastics settle on the ocean…

Thank you very much. It was just the other day that I did my Common Entrance. Firstly , let me congratulate you on your performance on the last sitting of GSAT and you will have the distinction to be the last generation of Jamaicans to sit that notorious examination and I’m seeing the broad smiles on the parents faces that you will no longer have to go through the very involved process which is GSAT because I gather that the parents say that it's as if they are the ones sitting the exams; a very difficult period time but there is some good news. I gather though that there are some people who don't think it is good news that the GSAT examinations will end and they will be replaced by a new examination called the PEP. It is the Primary Exit Profile, (PEP), sounds good. Now, there is a reason why we have to transition from GSAT to a new method of examination. When we did not have universal secondary education meaning that students who went through the primary system had to have some means of filtering them and placing them into the limited high school places then based…

It was very heart-warming to enter the plant this morning and see the many Jamaicans coming to work. These kinds of infrastructure projects, though they use quite a bit of foreign exchange, they generate significant employment and just interacting with the labour force on the site here, tells me that the management of the construction here at JPS have taken all the necessary measures to ensure that there is industrial harmony on the site and that there is some amount of human resource development taking place and you can see it in how the workers are very much involved and very excited about this plant. I gather that 75% of the labour force here is Jamaican but it also speaks to the harmonious working relationship with foreigners who are also working at the plant and just in general a very good industrial relations environment. It shows that we can bring in overseas investors/ foreign investors working together with local labour, local know-how, local capital and achieve major things for our economy. This is a major achievement for Jamaica, not just the replacement of the pool plant which was very inefficient to a newer generating facility which is almost twice as…