My fellow Jamaicans at home and abroad: Governor-General His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, ON, GCMG, CD Our Independence Anniversary allows us another opportunity to reflect, renew and recommit ourselves to the ongoing task of nation-building. We pause on our journey, as we do each year, to celebrate, and then we continue, pursuing our objective of achieving the...

My Jamaican brothers and sisters This year we celebrate Emancipation Day amidst the challenges and hardships that we continue to face as a nation. Every year at this time I can imagine and feel the excitement of our ancestors as they prepared for the August Morning, referred by our ancestors as "Augus Mawnin", that promised them freedom. I can imagine...

THANKS AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Approaching three years into my stewardship of the Transport and Works portfolios, I am happy to be now delivering the kind of strategic applications that are geared at modernising all portfolio areas. This first phase of delivery has come out of in-depth analysis of the pluses and minuses of the systems that were inherited in September 2007,...

Mr. Speaker, it is well known that ICTs are the pivot of productivity and growth in the post-industrial world and it is for this reason that our own growth prospects are inextricably bound up with how we drive this industry. Mr. Speaker, Jamaica has taken great care in not only laying a strong and sound foundation, but in adding value...

Minister with responsibility for Information, Telecommunications and Special Projects, Daryl Vaz, will be making his sectoral presentation to Parliament on July 20, 2010. This will be Minister Vaz' second presentation as Minister with responsibility for Information, and he is expected to address the wide range of issues and developments that fall under his portfolio as Minister with responsibility for Information,...

Mr President, despite the level and intensity of the criticism made of my handling of this matter, I have endured in good faith and good conscience. "when US authorities received the intercepted communications pursuant to a joint law enforcement memorandum between the United States and Jamaica that governs the obtaining and sharing of such communications, US authorities had no reason...

Mr. Speaker, once again I am privileged to speak in this Honourable House. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Hon. Dr. Kenneth Baugh, makes his presentation during the 2010/11 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (July 13). I remain heavily indebted to those who have afforded me this opportunity - the Councillors, constituency executive, workers and...

Mr. Speaker, I have on several occasions provided an update to this Honourable House on the progress of the divestment of Government assets in the sugar industry. It will be recalled that the St. Thomas and Trelawny estates were divested last July to Golden Grove Sugar Company and Everglades Farms Limited respectively. In relation to Frome, Monymusk and Bernard Lodge,...

The National Transformation Programme (NTP), known as "Fresh Start Jamaica", is a Civil Society led, value based, socioeconomic programme with the State as a major partner along with Church and the Private Sector. Its intent is to trigger a process of positive transformation for all Jamaicans. As National Director of the programme, I am taking a leave of absence for...

Mr. Speaker, permit me to thank this Honourable House for allowing me a third opportunity to speak on the state of agriculture and fisheries in these sectoral debates. Please allow me to thank the Honourable Prime Minister for his confidence in my stewardship and my Cabinet colleagues for their support. My team at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries headed...

I take this opportunity to congratulate the nation's nurses for the tremendous work that they have been doing throughout the years to assist in the health care of the people of Jamaica. Despite the challenges, we know that we all have to stand together and play our part in providing the best health for the people of Jamaica. Today, we...