PNP says PM speech uninspiring

The People's National Party (PNP) yesterday said it was disappointed with the presentation of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) leader and Prime Minister Andrew Holness at the party's 75th annual conference on Sunday.

According to the party in a release, the speech offered "no new policies or programmes to deal with the massive inequities arising from the continuing economic adjustment in the country".

The party said the prime minister's speech "was a restatement of projects, programmes and initiatives started by the previous PNP administrations, including the road improvement programme and housing for the vulnerable, among others.

"Noticeably absent from his presentation were any updates to the St Thomas highway programme and the development of the old Goodyear factory into a state-of-the-art town centre, which were promises already made to the people of St Thomas," the party said.

It said the speech also ignored the plight of the farmers, particularly those in sugar and coffee, who are facing challenges, but received no indication from the prime minister that their situation is even being heard.

The PNP said that this was symptomatic of the off-hand way in which the Government has treated several sectors and groups in the economy who are facing dislocation, lay-offs and contract work issues.

It said the JLP leader's proposed solution to ending squatting lacks analysis and relies on already failed approaches and does not take into "consideration the historic nature of the squatting phenomenon". This, it said, required radical rethinking to solve the issue, which has been part of the Jamaican history.

The PNP said although it welcomed the initiative for low-income housing, the Government should not delude itself into believing that $500 million could solve this major problem, as there is demand for some 100,000 units.