Speeches by the Prime Minister

Address By The Most Hon. Andrew Holness, ON, MP At the Groundbreaking Ceremony for JPSCO Old Harbour Bay Power Station April 7, 2017  I am extremely pleased to be here for this long anticipated groundbreaking Old Harbour Bay Power Plant. Last night I received a frantic telephone message. “Prime Minister, I hear you’re not going to be here today,” I said, “I wasn’t planning on coming but I had another engagement to deal with; another very important matter of state and I expected that that engagement would last for about three or four hours which would mean that I wouldn’t be able to make it for your 4 o’clock start and by the time I was finished with that engagement you probably would have been finished with the groundbreaking.” Of course there were several email exchanges back and forth, back and forth, and then Minister Wheatley came to see me and he said “I think you really should come. This is such an important milestone for Jamaica” and so I know you’ve all forgiven me for being here approximately two hours after your planned start. Having reflected on it, I thought it was important to be here because this marks…

Address By The Most Hon. Andrew Holness, ON, MP at the Tour of Monymusk Sugar Factory, Clarendon March 31, 2017 I want to first of all thank Minister Samuda for the invitation to come here. He didn't persuade me; actually that was Minister Spencer who persuaded me because he said after this I’m going to be feted in his constituency where I will have fish and lobster and all kinds of things but I decided to come because Minister Samuda has been a faithful advocate for the sugar industry. Indeed one of the very first crisis that we faced as a new government was the prospect of the closure of Monymusk. I recalled distinctly, vividly, the panic in the voice of Minister Samuda when he called me on the phone that Sunday morning and he said “there is a problem Prime Minister". He said "I’m about to meet with the workers and the mangers and the operators. What am I going to tell them because if we don't act, if we don't do something…" - and you know Minister Samuda, has in his DNA what you call a proclivity for being hyperbolic. I wouldn't really say to exaggerate but he…

Address By The Most Hon. Andrew Holness, ON, MP at the Ground Breaking Ceremony for the US$110 Million Excellence Oyster Bay Resort at Blue Waters, Trelawny March 30, 2017   Thank you Minister Bartlett. I was just reflecting that I need a vacation. You will agree with me that the backdrop of the Caribbean Sea, the wind and the sand - well we have the sun everyday so we take it for granted, but it is all just very relaxing and I was literally just drifting off until Ed reminded me that I had to speak. This is indeed a very valuable gift that God has given to Jamaica, this environment, this climate; we have to use it wisely because as it stands now tourism is our largest foreign exchange earner. It is our major production and it is our major export. Yes tourism is an export industry; it's just that you have to come here to enjoy it. Jamaica is blessed so while it may come as a surprise to others that we have been ranked number one in this region and I believe they made an error to say twelfth in the world. I believe it's higher than…

Address By The Most Hon. Andrew Holness, ON, MP at the International Women’s Day Luncheon Jamaica House, March 13, 2017 I'm very pleased that you've accepted my invitation to join me for lunch today on International Women's Day; the day when we not just recognize but celebrate the great role that women play in our society and the value that they add to society. I've learnt many things today in conversation at my table; very profound statements have been made. Women are the biggest peacemakers. Agreed? Of course, if you empower women, you build stronger communities. But we went into deeper discussions on what we need to do to improve our society through improving the conditions and circumstances of women in the society. The discussion at my table centered around independence. Now independence is a big thing for me. You would've heard my wife say she's an independent woman; she does her own thing but the conversation was about greater financial literacy for women and supporting women in taking charge of their own financial affairs. People might think it's to deal with poverty – “sir you are talking about women who are poor” but women who are also fairly well…

Address by the Most Hon. Andrew Holness At the Signing Of Memorandum of Understanding for the construction of New Parliament and Government offices on March 9, 2017   Today is the start of great things for Jamaica. I announced last year in my budget presentation that we would seek to develop a campus of government buildings that would encircle the National Heroes Circle.   The intention was to bring together all the Ministries, Agencies and Departments of the Jamaican State into a purpose built area which we could leverage for greater efficiency, provide greater security to merge services and to improve customer service delivery to the citizens of Jamaica; but more than that in concentrating development effort, we could become a catalyst for the wider redevelopment of downtown Kingston and the general vision is not just to put up square boxes that rise several stories.   The vision is to build buildings that represent the future of Jamaica, buildings that shows the aspirations of the Jamaican people, structures that when  we look at them we can say we're leaving legacies for future generation and when you put them all together you can say we're building communities.   Communities where people…

Contribution of the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, Prime Minister On the Integrity Commission Bill Tuesday, January 31, 2017 [“AN ACT to Promote and enhance standards of ethical conduct for Parliamentarians, public officials and other persons by consolidating laws relating to the prevention of corruption and the award, monitoring and investigating of the government contracts and prescribed licenses and to provide for the Establishment of a single body to be known as the Integrity Commission to promote and strengthen the measures for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of acts of corruption; to repeal the Parliament (Integrity of Members) Act and to provide for other related matters”.]  Mr. Speaker, let me start by emphasising the commitment of this Government to fighting and eliminating corruption in this country. Accountability, transparency and integrity are hallmarks of all self-respecting democracies, and these principles must always be promoted and upheld in furtherance of good governance, social cohesion and economic advancement. There is no denying that whilst we have made significant strides as a politically independent country, we could have achieved much more were it not for corruption in many forms: revenue leakage due to corrupt practices, misuse of public funds, and the overall perception of pervasive corruption,…

Contribution of the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, Prime Minister in his Capacity as Chairman of the National Road Safety Council to the Debate on the Road Traffic Act, 2016  (AN ACT to Repeal and Replace the Road Traffic Act; to establish the Island Traffic Authority for the regulation and control of traffic on roads; to improve road safety and transport efficiency and reduce the cost of administering road transport; to create new categories of driver’s licences; and for connected matters.) Mr. Speaker, I recognise the Portfolio Minister and in my capacity as the Chairman of the National Road Safety Council; it is my responsibility to add my voice to this debate. Introduction We all agree that the passing of this Road Traffic Act is critical. Globally, about 1.25 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes. Between 20 and 50 million more people suffer non-fatal injuries, with many incurring a disability as a result of their injuries. Road traffic injuries cause considerable economic losses to victims, their families, and to nations as a whole. As of yesterday, January 23rd: Twenty persons (17 males and three females) have lost their lives on the nation’s roads with the overriding cause…

Address by The Most Hon. Andrew Holness 12th Annual Heal the Family, Heal the Nation January 5, 2017 - National Arena  Mr. Moderator, Bishop Dr. Alvin Bailey and you know I must acknowledge the governor general in his absence. He sent a very inspiring message, His Excellency Most Honorable Sir Patrick Allen. I know he is here with us in spirit. The Most Honorable Portia Simpson-Miller, Leader of the Opposition. The ministers of government who are here but since I am here I give them a pass - let me also acknowledge the Member of Parliament for this constituency Mr. Julian Robinson. Now there is nothing that can touch this building or this immediate facility because the men of god who are gathered here and women, they are so powerful in spirit that no evil intention can touch anything here. Covered! So I want to greet the very powerful assembly of instruments of God who are here - you the beautiful people of the church. Jamaicans listening in Jamaica and all over the world, I am happy to be here and may I wish for you and your family God’s richest blessings, health, happiness, prosperity for 2017. I am sure that 2017…

PUBLIC SECTOR TRANSFORMATION POLICY SPEECH PRIME MINISTER ANDREW HOLNESS, ON, MP - January 5, 2017 INTRODUCTORY REMARKS A New Year begins with new possibilities and new opportunities. Indeed, 2017 began with positive news of 2% growth in the third quarter marking the 7th consecutive quarter of growth of the Jamaican economy. Inflation is at historical lows and the current account continues strengthen. Private sector and foreign investment are gathering momentum, and industry is expanding. The government will not allow anything to detract, delay or deter this progress. It is against this background that, today, I want to talk about my government’s vision of, and commitment to, Public Sector Transformation. I TOO WORK IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR  All Jamaicans who earn and consume contribute to the collective revenue base of Jamaica. That revenue base is used to hire some of us, including myself, to deliver administrative, professional, regulatory, policy management, licensing, promotion, maintenance, transportation and many other services to the public through central government or through a number of state agencies or enterprises. We, who deliver these and other function, comprise the public sector. We are paid by the Jamaican taxpayers to deliver services to the Jamaican people. On a day-to-day basis I work…