Speeches by the Prime Minister

Keynote Address by The Most Hon. Andrew Holness ON, MP at the Geographic Information Systems User Conference October 10, 2017 Mr Fitz Jackson, Opposition Spokesperson on National Security Mr Silburn Clarke, President, Spatial Innovision Ltd Mr Alexander Williams who left us chairman, Land Information Council of Jamaica Mr Evan Thompson, Director of the Meteorological Service of Jamaica The Chief of Defense Staff, General Rocky Mead Commissioner of Police, George Quallo Permanent secretaries, Heads of Agencies And departments Members of Staff of the Nation Spatial Data Management Division The Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation Member of the Private Sector Distinguished guests Members of the media Ladies and Gentlemen A very good morning to you all It is an honour to address the Inaugural Jamaica GIS User Conference celebrating geo-spatial technology, innovation, implementation and use in our country. I congratulate the Land Information Council of Jamaica on their 25th anniversary of organizing and ensuring the development and maintenance of a national network geographical information system through the collaborative efforts of land and land related agencies. I must single out Mrs. Jacqueline Dacosta, former permanent secretary in the Ministry of Land and Environment and former Chairperson of the LICJ who has…

Keynote Address by The Most Hon. Andrew Holness ON, MP at the Itelbpo 5th Anniversary Celebration and Housewarming October 4, 2017   It is my great pleasure to be here with you this evening. I make it a point of duty to be present at these very important openings - groundbreaking - because it drives home the point that great things are happening  in Jamaica and believe me I am doing about three per week so it's amazing what is happening in Jamaica and it is showing the psychology of economics: confidence.   People are willing to take risk and Yoni, Lisa, Richard you have taken a risk on Jamaica and that is something that the government looks on and we're very grateful for that and we encourage more Jamaicans to take a risk on Jamaica but we're not saying that you should be foolish with your money because what the government is doing is to make it easier for you to calculate your risk and it is clear that you have been able to project what the future will be. You have been able to calculate what the risks are and find them acceptable and then you have made…

  Address By The Most Hon. Andrew Holness ON, MP Prime Minister at the Ground-breaking Ceremony 58 HWT by Stanley Motta Limited September 28, 2017 Ambassador Nigel Clarke   Mr. P. B. Scott, Chairman, Musson Group   Ms Melanie Subratie, Chair & Chief Executive Officer of Stanley Motta   Members of Staff of Stanley Motta and Musson Group   Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Agencies and Departments   Members of the Private Sector   Distinguished Guests   Members of the Media   Ladies and Gentlemen   I’m certain I have captured everyone that I need to acknowledge. It is indeed a good morning for Jamaica and I’m very happy to be here at yet another signal of inclusive growth and job creation for Jamaica; 58 HWT, right in the centre of bustling Kingston city on Half Way Tree Road.   I would like to extend my congratulations to Musson Group/Stanley Motta Limited for their investment in Jamaica – this project symbolizes the confidence you have in Jamaica’s productivity and capacity and symbolizes the convergence of public and private sector aspirations.  I cannot speak about the powerful conglomerate, the Musson Group; without specially mentioning P. B. Scott, Chairman of the Musson Group…

Address By The Hon. Andrew Holness ON, MP Prime Minister at the Official Opening of Breathless Montego Bay Resort and Spa September 25, 2017   I've stayed at many hotels. My job affords me that at least and I must say that this is the one that leaves you breathless.   I'm very happy to be here with you this evening to officially open Breathless Montego Bay Resort and Spa where you can experience unlimited luxury to leave you breathless.   The demand for Jamaica's tourism product continues to grow. Jamaica is aggressively expanding its tourism base by continuing to offer quality experience supported by a range of major infrastructure improvements to secure our place as the preferred destination in the Caribbean.   Today's official opening of Breathless Montego Bay Resort and Spa is yet another signal that there is a premium on our various tourism offerings and that the government of Jamaica in collaboration with our partners in tourism will continue to expand and enhance our tourism sector in order to strengthen Jamaica's place as a world leader in the industry.   I have to congratulate AM Resorts twice because you've made a record. I've never heard of one…

Address by the Most Hon. Prime Minister Andrew Holness at Quarterly Press Briefing September 21, 2017     The tax revenue is at $54.5 billion dollars compared to $51.2 billion budgeted and this is the best tax revenue performance since 2002/ 2003 fiscal year. According to the World Bank, Jamaica is ranked 12th best place to start a business in the world.   The income tax threshold (the second phase) took effect on April 1, 2017. This resulted in the threshold moving to 1.5 million dollars.  In fact to be specific, $1,500,096; very important.   This adjustment also resulted in an additional increase of $499, 824. The effective threshold for the 2017 year of assessment will therefore be $1,375, 140 and the full threshold of $1.5 million will become effective on January 1, 2018.   I've spoken a lot already about the NHT and just to run through some of the benefits that we've given because we've had several policy changes. The policy changes will increase the amount of money persons will be able to access on the open market.   Previously only contributors who were constructing or who were buying into new development whose practical completion certificate dated the…

Statement by the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, Prime Minister on the Jamaica National Service Corps on Tuesday, September 26, 2017 INTRODUCTION Mr. Speaker, on March 21, 2017, I tabled a Bill to amend the Defence Act; to establish an arm of the Jamaica Defence Force to be known as the Jamaica National Service Corps (JNSC).  The establishment of the JNSC is a critical component of the JDF’s Employment and Engagement Strategy and is also an integral component of the Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) Initiative, which I also launched during my Budget Presentation in March 2017. On Saturday, September 23, 2017, I was the Reviewing Officer at the Passing Out Ceremony for the first cohort of Jamaica National Service Corps soldiers.  This was an extremely proud moment for me personally and one for which the entire nation should feel a sense of pride. The 232 privates and 2 potential officers completed 13 weeks of intense training. Their training challenged them mentally and physically and throughout, these young men demonstrated real strength of character.   This first Phase of their training programme covered thirteen (13) weeks, which represents Phase 1 of five (5) phases of a year-long programme. The curriculum for…

Statement by the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, Prime Minister to Parliament Jamaica’s Assistance in the Aftermath of the Adverse Weather Events in the Caribbean on Tuesday, September 26, 2017 Mr. Speaker, As I rise this afternoon, I reflect on the words of Prime Minister  Roosevelt Skerrit in addressing the 2017 United Nations General Assembly; “Let these extraordinary events elicit extraordinary efforts to rebuild nations sustainably”. I have great confidence that as a region we will rebuild and we will not just replicate what was there before. The approach will be a systematic one of renewal; with planned structured development; with stronger homes and supporting amenities, infrastructure that can withstand hurricane force winds of the likes of Irma and Maria and better roads and communication systems. Mr. Speaker, we pray for all our brothers and sisters who have been impacted and remind them that there is hope and that out of adversity will come opportunity. Mr. Speaker, in my conversation with Prime Minister Skerrit, I was deeply moved by his depth of emotion and unwavering strength, and I pledged Jamaica’s full support in whatever way possible.  I will go into the details of our support shortly.   We must reach out…

Address By The Hon. Andrew Holness ON, MP Prime Minister at the West Jamaica Conference Seventh-day Adventist Conference Centre, Mount Salem September 24, 2017 ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   My wife was a member of the Spanish Town SDA choir. Pastor Brown can verify that fact, so when Dr. Floyd Morrison decides to throw words, I will remind him that my family are founding members of the Spanish Town SDA and that in the eyes of God I am in good standing with the church. I listened carefully to your Member of Parliament and my Attorney- General. The essence of the AG’s message is brevity and hopefully I will get a resounding round of applause as she did.   Custodes, distinguished ladies and gentlemen of the church, it is my great, distinct pleasure and honour to be with you this afternoon. It was not planned for me to be here but circumstances made it possible. I have another event in Montego Bay and when I got the invitation I said, you know what, this is a tremendous opportunity to come and fellowship with the church but more importantly to say thanks to the church for the work you have been doing in St.…

Statement By Prime Minister Andrew Holness at the IMF Second Review Press Conference September 14, 2017 ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   We're pleased that the second review was concluded successfully and we express thanks to Dr Ramakrishnan and her team for their tremendous work in preparing for the review and diligently conducting the review. The IMF Review Team holds extensive consultations with ministries, departments and agencies and engages in detailed data analysis and bench marking. We're grateful to them and to their colleagues in Washington for the work that they have done and their continued support.   On behalf of the Government of Jamaica I express appreciation to the team at the Ministry of Finance led by Minister Shaw and to the Bank of Jamaica led by of course the Governor of the Bank of Jamaica Brian Wynter.   It's a little bit tricky for me to thank myself but the team at the Office of the Prime Minister also played a part and I want to thank the team; that team led by Ambassador Clarke.   I want to talk a little bit about ownership. Passing of these reviews cannot be taken for granted. Under the precautionary Standby arrangement reviews are conducted…