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Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister, with responsibility for Local Government Reform, Robert Montague, will be spending a working day in St Thomas on September 15, to meet with Councillors and staff of the St. Thomas Parish Council. Addressing the monthly meeting of the St. Thomas Parish Council, Acting Secretary/Manager, Naudia Crosskill, said the State Minister...

A Motion calling on Government agencies, farmers' organisations and related bodies, to give full support to the nation's farmers, in their quest to increase food production, was approved by the Senate, on September 12. Moved by Opposition Senator, Norman Grant, the Motion is seeking to prevent, or break the vicious cycle of poverty and food insecurity that could arise, as...

Minister of Education, Andrew Holness, has disclosed that plans for the National Parenting Commission are far advanced, and that the legislation for its establishment should be passed by January of next year. "The parents themselves do not understand how to go about holding the school accountable and so we have decided to, and we are very far advanced in setting...

Minister of Education, Andrew Holness, has disclosed that all schools, except those that require significant repairs, should be fully re-opened by the end of October. He made this announcement during an interview with JIS News, on Wednesday (September 10), at the Ministry of Education's Head Office in Kingston. "We gave a directive that all schools should be opened as at...

Two Bills, addressing the backlog of court cases, were passed in the House of Representatives on September 9. The Bills seek to amend the Judicature Supreme Court Act, so as to increase the number of Judges of the Supreme Court and the number of Masters; and the Judicature Appellate Jurisdiction Act, so as to increase, by six, the maximum number...

Jamaica Trade and Invest (JTI), will be seeking to generate new investments and showcase the island as a leading contact centre destination, at this year's Call Centre Expo in Birmingham on September 16 and 17. The Expo, which is in its 10th year, is the largest in Europe, and JTI's United Kingdom (UK) Trade Commissioner, Laurence Jones, told JIS News,...

Commissioner of Police, Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin, has said that civilianization, is one of the strong pillars that the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), will be using to help increase and enhance its capacity to police the nation. "We are working assiduously to deal with the human resources of the Force and to get our numbers up, and we are doing...

A new two-year wage agreement (2008 to 2010), was signed yesterday (Sept.11), between the Government and the Jamaica Police Federation, during a ceremony held at the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, National Heroes Circle offices. Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Senator Dwight Nelson, noted that the 40-hour work week provision, which...

Fifteen persons from the county of Cornwall were honoured with the 2008 Governor-General's Award on Wednesday (Sept. 10). The awardees, three each from the parishes of Trelawny, St. James, Hanover, Westmoreland, and St. Elizabeth, were recognised for their achievements, excellence and their unselfish contributions to the development of their fellow citizens. The ceremony was held at the Negril Hills Golf...

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Senator Don Wehby, has announced that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) will be funding the construction of a new bridge to replace the Hope River Bridge, in Harbour View, St. Andrew. The bridge was destroyed during the passage of Tropical Storm Gustav last month. The Senator, who toured...

Jamaica's newly appointed Consul General to the Southern United States, Sandra Grant-Griffiths, was formally introduced to her Caribbean counterparts in South Florida, at the monthly meeting of the CARICOM Consular Corp, on Tuesday (Sept. 9) in Coral Gables, Miami. Mrs. Griffiths who assumed office on Tuesday, (Sept. 2), at the Miami location of the Jamaica Consulate, pledged to continue support...

Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Paula Llewellyn has lauded the proposed amendments to the Jury Act in respect of the number of jurors required to render a verdict in non-capital murder cases. "Recently the Prime Minister made a proposal in Parliament for the amendment to Jury Act, to allow for the conviction for what could be loosely regarded as non-capital...