More Speeches

Mr Speaker, today I update the House on matters related to the just concluded CONCACAF Under 17 football championship which was staged in Montego Bay, St. James. I am sure the whole House will join me in congratulating the Jamaican team which advanced to FIFA Under 17 World Cup Finals in Mexico later this year by finishing as one of...

I am sure I speak for all my colleagues in expressing appreciation to Prime Minister Tillman Thomas, the government and people of Grenada for the warm hospitality we have received and the fine arrangements that have been made for this conference. Grenada is the spice island of the Caribbean but it is much more than that and we are enjoying...

Mr. Speaker, The Ministry of Health wishes to apprise the Parliament of the Health measures implemented for the CONCACAF U-17 tournament and in particular the circumstances that led to the withdrawal of the Haitian under-17 football team from the CONCACAF tournament being staged in Montego Bay. This culminated in a meeting of Haitian Officials led by the Deputy Prime Minister...

Mr. Speaker I am pleased to announce the planned restart of operations of UC Rusal’s Windalco-Kirkvine Works Plant in Manchester beginning July 1 this year. This follows the restart of operations at WINDALCO’s Ewarton plant in St. Catherine last July bringing on board over a thousand jobs. Mr Speaker the very hard and focused work of the Ministry of Energy...

Queen’s Counsel, Hon. Emil George, has set a Friday afternoon (Jan. 21) deadline for the submission of outstanding statements pivotal to the Manatt/Coke Commission of Enquiry, which is being held at the Jamaica Conference Centre, downtown Kingston. Mr. George, who is Chairman of the Commission, on Monday (Jan. 17) complained that   statements from some key players involved in the extradition...

My fellow Jamaicans... 2010 was a year of mixed fortunes. It was, in some respects, a tumultuous year, most notably with the events surrounding the extradition of Christopher Coke. In the first half of the year, we experienced the worst drought in more than 30 years and then, in a complete reversal, we had more rains in the latter part...

Morning has broken, like the first morningBlackbird has spoken, like the first birdPraise for the singing, praise for the morningPraise for the springing, fresh from the word.And I might add, praise for the New Year! Another eventful year has passed by and here we are at the start of a New Year with its customary promises of a brand New...

My Fellow Jamaicans:Each New Year brings with it the promise of a new beginning, and the hope of a brighter future. I believe in renewal, and so at the beginning of this New Year, I invite you to pause to renew our minds and consciousness. . We need to embolden ourselves by renewing our aspirations, dreams and concepts of what...

There is now greater incentive for companies to invest in the redevelopment and renewal of urban areas, with the passing of the Urban Renewal and Tax relief Amendment Act, by the Senate on December 17. The amendments will facilitate the exemption from stamp duty and transfer tax, land acquired for use by approved developers. It will also allow for an...

Following the publication on Tuesday, of what is reported to be a classified internal missive by an official of the US Interests Section in Havana, Cuba which commented negatively on Jamaica's level of cooperation with Cuba in countering drug trafficking, the Prime Minister directed the Minister of National Security to carry out investigations into the allegations and submit a report...

The death of John Maxwell on December 10 represents the passing of one of the most influential figures in the Jamaican media landscape for more than half a century. His professional interests ranged across all media but perhaps his greatest contribution was through the broadcast media. After his early introduction to print journalism at the Gleaner, Mr. Maxwell was part...

Jamaica is very pleased to commemorate once again CARICOM-Cuba Day - on the, 8th December 2010. Building on the success of the celebrations in 2009, we felt it would be appropriate to collaborate with the University of the West Indies this year, as it is an institution that demonstrates the unity of our region and serves twelve of the fourteen...