Seven new posts have been created within the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation to accommodate persons who will be displaced as a result of the impending closure of the Road Maintenance Fund (RMF). There will be two accounting jobs and five positions in the technical services division, which will first be advertised among the former officers of the...

Debate on legislation aimed at strengthening the regime governing the functions of Justices of the Peace (JPs) began in the House of Representatives on November 21. The Justice of the Peace Bill and the Renaming of the Courts of Petty Sessions (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill were piloted by Minister of Justice, Hon. Delroy Chuck. The Bills provide for codifying the selection,...

A new 45-day amnesty for persons with outstanding traffic tickets gets underway on Monday (Nov. 27). Motorists with tickets issued from September 1, 2010 to October 31, 2017 can pay them without repercussion up to January 13, 2018. On Friday (November 24), the Senate approved the Road Traffic (Temporary Ticket Amnesty Number 2) Act 2017, which facilitates the new period...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says small contractors are being utilised in the delivery of the 15,000 affordable housing solutions that the Administration has committed to provide by March 2020. He said the National Housing Trust (NHT) is engaging the services of the contractors under its Labour and Small Materials Programme (LSMP). These contractors, he noted, are learning...

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Pearnel Charles, says that compensation should be awarded for the many indignities heaped on the country’s ancestors during the period of slavery. He made the remarks during the Reparations Youth Baton Relay and Rally at Gordon House on November 21. Mr. Charles argued that the British Government felt that it was just to...

The House of Representatives on Tuesday (November 21) approved the 168 amendments made by the Senate to the National Identification and Registration Bill, which seeks to establish a reliable identification system for Jamaica. A National Identification System (NIDS) is intended to provide a comprehensive and secure structure to enable the capture and storage of identity information for all Jamaicans. Each...

Prime Minister Andrew Holness today (November 21) announced in Parliament the areas to be designated as the boundary of the Cockpit Country and of the Cockpit Country Protected Area. Prime Minister Holness says Cabinet adopted the Parris Lyew-Ayee Jr. (2005) Boundary as the boundary of the Cockpit Country. This boundary will be declared and gazetted. Meanwhile, the protected area will...