The Senate, on Friday (May 29), approved amendments to the Financial Administration and Audit Act, 2020, to extend, by two years, the target date to reduce Jamaica’s debt to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio to 60 per cent. The legislation will facilitate the extension of the timeline from March 31, 2026 to March 31, 2028. It further amends section 48C/2A...

Representatives of the Ministry of Health and Wellness, and Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB), say their entities are in a state of “heightened readiness” for the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30. This assurance comes against the background of meteorologists’ anticipation of a very active season. Forecasters are predicting the possible formation of 13 to...

Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says protocols to facilitate the reopening of the tourism industry, which was adversely impacted by the novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), have been drafted and are being reviewed by the Ministry of Health and Wellness. He made the announcement during Friday’s (May 29) virtual ceremony at the Ministry’s offices in New Kingston to handover 10,000...

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke, says the protocols for the resumption of operations in the workplace will be published and disseminated within the next week. He said that the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Task Force, which is crafting the protocols, is “far advanced” in its work. Dr. Clarke chairs the multisector working group established...

As at Friday (May 29), 619 new samples were tested for COVID-19, seven (7) of which returned positive results. Jamaica now has a total of 575 confirmed COVID-19 cases, following the discovery of a positive test result that had been counted twice. In the meantime, recoveries have increased by five, to now total 289 patients, who have recovered and have...

Director General of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Dr. Wayne Henry, says the nation requires the collective utilisation of resources at its disposal to overcome the challenges associated with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Speaking at the PIOJ’s digital quarterly media briefing on May 27, Dr. Henry said that Jamaica has entered a period of “significant challenges”, consequent on...

Members of the Senate, on Friday (May 29), paused to observe a moment of silence for the late Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Shahine Robinson. They had just received word that Mrs. Robinson, who had served as Member of Parliament for North East St. Ann since 2001, had passed away after ailing for some time. She was 66...