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Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller has given a clear warning that the administration would get tougher on persons who are responsible for abusing and causing hurt to the nation's children, whether through neglect or deliberate action. Speaking at the launch this morning of a national road safety poster competition at Jamaica House, the Prime Minister declared: "We have to do...

Vice Chairman, National Road Safety Council (NRSC), Dr. Lucien Jones, says the new traffic ticketing system has been achieving significant success since its implementation. "We have a new ticketing system and already over 700,000 tickets have been issued within the last 18 months, worth $1.6 billion, and of that, $682 million has been collected and if we look at what...

The Government has pledged its support on the issues of climate change, with the aim of sending an urgent message that climate change is a serious concern to the country’s sustainable development. Speaking at a symposium for climate change, held at the University of the West Indies Law Faculty, on April 4, Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change,...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has launched a new variety of disease resistant and higher yielding bananas and plantains, which are expected to facilitate increased cost efficiencies by 30 per cent for local banana farmers. It is also expected that the new crops will help to create a sustainable value added market within three years. The bananas and plantains,...

A new local tomato paste is to be introduced to the market soon, as the Government moves to decrease the level of imports of the commodity, says State Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Ian Hayles. He was addressing the launch of Farmers’ Month, at the downtown Kingston offices of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, on April 4. "Over the short,...

The 2012/13 Estimates of Expenditure will be tabled in the House of Representatives on May 10, Information Minister, Senator the Hon. Sandrea Falconer, disclosed on April 4, at  the Jamaica House press briefing, held at the Office of the Prime Minister. The decision was made at the recently concluded two-day Cabinet retreat, where Ministers considered the medium term economic programme,...

Minister with responsibility for Sports in the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), Hon Natalie Neita Headley, is encouraging more local companies to become involved in the upgrading of sports facilities across the island as they could become prime income earners.    “Having the best facilities in place will encourage people from across the world to want to come to...

Coaches of netball, the island’s top women's sport, are benefitting from advanced training, which will better enable them to build the skills and techniques of the country’s players from the earliest stage. The six-week training course, which began on March 17, is a joint venture between the University of Technology (UTech) and the Jamaica Netball Association (JNA). It is being...

Commissioner of Police, Owen Ellington, says the police are looking at utilising ‘shot spotter’ technology to assist with investigating gun-related incidents and crimes. “We have started discussions with the Minister of National Security (Peter Bunting) about the deployment of ‘shot spotter’ technology in some of our crime hotspots and in some of areas that are plagued by criminal gang violence,”...

Commissioner of Police, Owen Ellington, says the police have made over 60 arrests and seized the assets of criminal organisations, as the authority intensifies its drive to dismantle these entities. “We have made well over 60 significant arrests in the last couple of weeks. We have seized hundreds of millions of dollars worth of real estate, high end motor vehicles...

Claimants awaiting awards in court cases over lengthy periods will soon be able to benefit from interim payments from defendants. This is being made possible through the drafting of legislation, which will give Supreme Court judges the authority to make Orders for interim payments in such circumstances as specified by the court.  Announcing that Cabinet had issued drafting instructions, Minister...

Cabinet has endorsed the establishment of an Economic Advisory Council to advise the Minister of Finance and Planning, Hon. Dr. Peter Phillips, on financial and economic issues, which will promote growth and development in the country. The Council will comprise former Financial Secretaries, Collin Bullock and Shirley Tyndale; and Economist, Dennis Morrison. “Cabinet was informed that the economic challenges facing...