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The Government has put forward a budget of $612.4 billion for 2012/13, with $375 billion earmarked for Recurrent (house-keeping) expenses and $237.4 billion for Capital (development) obligations. Details of these projections are included in the Estimates of Expenditure, which were tabled in the House of Representatives on Thursday May 10th by Minister of Finance, Planning and Public Service, Hon. Dr....

The 2012/2013 session of Parliament began Thursday May 10, at Gordon House, with the traditional pomp and pageantry, and highlighted by the delivery of the Throne Speech by Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir. Patrick Allen, at 11:00 a.m. A small group of supporters who gathered at Duke Street cheered  members of both political parties as they arrived. The...

As the Government moves to improve the number and quality of Bills passed in the Houses of Parliament, approximately 32 Bills will be approved during this legislative year. This was disclosed by Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, as he delivered the Throne Speech in Gordon House, on May 10, to mark the opening of the new...

Cabinet has approved insurance placement for the Airports Authority of Jamaica (AAJ) for the period May 1, 2012, to April 30, 2015, through Marathon Insurance Brokers Limited. “The AAJ’s insurance had to be extended in March for a period of one month to allow for the Financial Services Commission (FSC) to investigate if there was preferential treatment in the quotation...

The State Opening of Parliament will take place on May 10, beginning at 11:00 a.m. Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen  will deliver the Throne Speech, in which he will outline the government’s programmes and policies for the 2012/13 Fiscal Year, which began on April 1. Later in the afternoon, Minister of Finance, Planning and Public Service,...

A motion proposing the re-examination of the driver’s licencing system has been referred to a Special Select Committee for further review. The motion, which was tabled by Government Senator, Imani Duncan-Price in the Upper House on Thursday May 3, questioned the integrity of the current system, in particular the process and qualifications required for an applicant to successfully obtain a...

The Senate has approved amendments to the Processed Food Act and the Standards Act, to among other things, increase fines and penalties for breaches. Approval of the Bills, which were piloted by Minister of Justice, Senator the Hon. Mark Golding through the Upper House on Friday (May 4), pave the way for offenders to be fined $3 million for offences,...

Senator Lambert Brown is urging the Government to develop an address database of all drivers’ licence holders as a means of easily locating traffic violators. The move, he said, will ensure that traffic offenders pay their fines and reduce the levels of delinquency within the system. “I believe that in the future, what we need to be doing is seeking...

The House of Representatives on May 1 approved a motion allowing unfinished business on the Order Paper to be carried over into in the new session of Parliament. The move serves to signal that sittings of Parliament will the prorogued soon for the 2012/ 13 session to begin. Leader of Government Business in the Lower House, Hon. Phillip Paulwell, explained...

A Bill seeking to enhance the conduct of attorneys at law, and the quality of service they provide, was tabled in the Senate on April 27. Tabled by the Minister of Justice, Senator the Hon. Mark Golding, the Bill, entitled ‘An Act to amend the Legal Profession Amendment Act’, contains provisions empowering the General Legal Council to take specified actions...

A Bill seeking to enhance the conduct of attorneys at law, and the quality of service they provide, was tabled in the Senate on April 27. Tabled by the Minister of Justice, Senator the Hon. Mark Golding, the Bill, entitled ‘An Act to amend the Legal Profession Amendment Act’, contains provisions empowering the General Legal Council to take specified actions...

The new session of Parliament began on January 17, with the swearing in of the 63 elected representatives, who won their seats in the General Elections on December 29, 2011, and 20 of the 21-member Senate. During the ceremony, Member of Parliament (MP) for South Manchester, Michael Peart, was chosen as Speaker of the House of Representatives, while MP for...