Drafting Instructions for Bill to Transition Jamaica to Republic Being Prepared

The Constitutional Reform Committee (CRC) is moving to prepare drafting instructions for the substantive Bill to transition Jamaica from a constitutional monarchy to a republic.

Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Hon. Marlene Malahoo Forte, made the disclosure during her contribution to the 2024/25 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (June 11).

“When the Bill comes to the House, it will have to be laid for three months before it can be debated on. It is the intention to use the first three months to hear from the people and further inform the people about the Bill,” she said.

The Minister said that the proposal is for the Bill to be reviewed by a Joint Select Committee of Parliament between the time of tabling and the commencement of the debate in the Lower House.

“After the Bill is debated on, another three months will have to elapse before it is voted on and we will take into account the points raised during the debate. After the Bill is passed in the House, it will go to the Senate. The Constitution says if a Bill passed in the House is not passed with the required two thirds vote in the Senate within a month of it being sent there, it would have been regarded as being rejected by the Senate,” she pointed out.

The Minister further explained that the Bill will be returned to the House for a second vote, which can take place in the same Parliament or in a subsequent Parliament.

“There are timelines that are set, which have to be honoured, and after the Bill is passed, it will go to the people,” Mrs. Malahoo Forte said.

The report of the Constitutional Reform Committee (CRC) on the transition and other matters was tabled in Parliament on May 21.