Jamaicaportal |
The Cabinet of Jamaica is the ultimate decision-making body of the executive within the Westminster system of government in traditional constitutional theory. The Cabinet of Jamaica is the principal instrument of government policy. It consists of the Prime Minister, and a minimum of thirteen other Ministers of Government, who must be members of one of the two Houses of Parliament. Not more than four members of the Cabinet may be members of the Senate. The Minister of Finance must be an elected member of the House of Representatives. [1] The Shadow Cabinet of Jamaica is seen as the alternative to the Cabinet of Jamaica, led by the Leader of the Opposition (Jamaica), and is charged with fairly criticizing and providing alternative policy to that proposed by the Government. [2]
The Cabinet of Jamaica is currently composed of The Jamaica Labour Party members because the party won the 2020 General elections. [3]
The following are the members of the Government Cabinet led by Prime Minister Andrew Holness. [4]
Each minister is responsible for the general administration of at least one government portfolio, and heads a corresponding ministry or ministries. The most important minister, following the prime minister, is the Minister of Finance, while other high-profile ministries include foreign affairs, national security, industry and health.
Further, the prime minister may recommend the governor general appoint to Cabinet some ministers of state and ministers without portfolio. Ministers of state often assume one responsibility of a ministry and are not considered as a part of the Cabinet. In the Jamaican press, Ministers of State of often referred to as Junior Ministers. Ministers without portfolio, often working within the Office of the prime minister, assuming one of the prime minister's subsidiary roles (excluding that of Minister of Defence). One exception exists within the current Cabinet.
Ministry or Department | Minister | Ministerial title | Since |
---|---|---|---|
Office of the Prime Minister | Andrew Holness, MP | Prime Minister Minister of Defence, Economic Growth and Job Creation (re-incorporates the Housing, Urban Renewal, Environment and Climate Change Portfolio formerly under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Renewal) | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of National Security | Dr. Horace Chang, MP | Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of National Security | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade | Sen. Kamina Johnson-Smith | Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Finance and the Public Service | Fayval Williams, MP | Minister of Finance and the Public Service | October 30, 2024 |
Ministry of Health and Wellness | Dr. Christopher Tufton, MP | Minister of Health and Wellness | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Justice | Delroy Chuck, KC, MP | Minister of Justice | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information | Dana Dixon, CD, MP | Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information | Oct 30, 2024 |
Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunication and Transport | Daryl Vaz, MP | Minister of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport | May 22, 2023 |
Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries | Floyd Green., MP | Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Mining | 2023 |
Ministry of Local Government and Community Development | Desmond McKenzie, MP | Minister of Local Government and Community Development | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce | Sen. Aubyn Hill | Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports | Olivia Grange, MP | Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Tourism | Edmund Bartlett, MP | Minister of Tourism | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Labour and Social Security | Pearnel Charles, JR., MP | Minister of Labour and Social Security | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Legal and Constitutional Affairs | Marlene Malahoo Forte, KC, MP | Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs | January 11, 2022 |
Attorney General Department | Derrick McKoy | Attorney General | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry or department | Minister | Ministerial title | Since |
---|---|---|---|
Ministry of Economic Growth & Job Creation | Robert Nesta Morgan, MP | Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth & Job Creation with responsibility for Works | May 22, 2023 |
Office of the Prime Minister | Homer Davis, MP | Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister (formerly Minister of State in the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development) assigned to Office of the Prime Minister in Western Jamaica (OPM West) to oversee and coordinate special projects and major developments (eg. Montego Bay Perimeter Road) in western parishes. | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation | Sen. Matthew Samuda | Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation with responsibility for Water, Environment & Climate Change | January 11, 2022 |
Nine ministers of state have been appointed but are not a part of the cabinet although they will help in the operations of their various sectors.
Ministry or department | Minister | Ministerial title | Since |
---|---|---|---|
Ministry of Labour and Social Security | Dr. Norman Alexander Dunn, MP | Minister of State in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security | May 22, 2023 |
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade | Alando Terrelonge, MP | Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade | May 22, 2023 |
Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Technology | William J.C. Hutchinson, MP | Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Technology | May 22, 2023 |
Ministry of National Security | Juliet Cuthbert-Flynn, MP | Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security | May 22, 2023 |
Office of the Prime Minister | Homer Davis, MP | Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Finance and the Public Service | Zavia Mayne, MP | Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance and Public Service | May 22, 2023 |
Ministry of Agriculture and Fishries | Franklyn Witter, MP | Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fishries | January 11, 2022 |
Ministry of Department | Minister | Ministerial title | Since |
---|---|---|---|
Office of the Prime Minister | Sen. Abka Fitz-Henley | Parliamentary Secretary | May 21, 2024 |
Politics in Jamaica takes place in the framework of a representative parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The 1962 Constitution of Jamaica established a parliamentary system whose political and legal traditions closely follow those of the United Kingdom. As the head of state, King Charles III - on the advice of the Prime Minister of Jamaica - appoints a governor-general as his representative in Jamaica. The governor-general has a largely ceremonial role, with their parliamentary function consisting simply of granting royal assent to bills which have passed Parliament. Jamaica constitutes an independent Commonwealth realm.
The People's National Party (PNP) is a social democratic political party in Jamaica, founded in 1938 by Norman Washington Manley who served as party president until his death in 1969. It holds 14 of the 63 seats in the House of Representatives, as 96 of the 227 local government divisions. The party is democratic socialist by constitution.
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The Jamaica Labour Party is one of the two major political parties in Jamaica, the other being the People's National Party (PNP). While its name might suggest that it is a social democratic party, the JLP is actually a conservative party.
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Portia Lucretia Simpson-Miller is a Jamaican former politician. She served as Prime Minister of Jamaica from March 2006 to September 2007 and again from 5 January 2012 to 3 March 2016. She was the leader of the People's National Party from 2005 to 2017 and the Leader of the Opposition twice, from 2007 to 2012 and from 2016 to 2017.
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Andrew Michael Holness, is a Jamaican politician who has served as Prime Minister of Jamaica since 3 March 2016, having previously served from 2011 to 2012, and as Leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) since 2011.
Kenneth Wykeham McNeill, MD, MP, CD is a Jamaican politician and former member of parliament for Westmoreland West, Jamaica. He is a former government minister. He was the Minister of Tourism of Jamaica from 2012 to 2016. He was elected the first vice chair of the Executive Council of the United Nations World Tourism Organization representing Jamaica in 2012 and elected chairman of the Executive council for the 2014-2015 period. McNeill was elected a Vice President of The People's National Party at the Party's annual conference in September 2016.
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Peter Phillips OJ MP is a Jamaican politician who has served as the MP for Saint Andrew East Central since 1993.
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General elections were held in Jamaica on Thursday, 3 September 2020 to elect 63 members of Parliament. As the constitution stipulates a five-year parliamentary term, the next elections were not expected until between 25 February and 10 June 2021. However, Prime Minister Andrew Holness called early elections to ensure a united response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. On the advice of Holness, Governor General Patrick Allen dissolved Parliament on 13 August 2020.
Fayval Shirley Williams is a Jamaican politician who is the Minister of Finance and the Public Service and the Member of Parliament for the St Andrew Eastern constituency. Williams has held multiple ministerial positions, including Minister of Education and Youth, Minister of Science, Energy and Technology, and Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service. She is the first female to be a minister in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, and also the first female minister of science, energy and technology. In June 2014, Fayval Williams was named as a member of the Jamaica Labour Party's Economic Advisory Council.
Maxine Antoinette Henry-Wilson, CD is a Jamaican educator and politician, representing the People's National Party (PNP). She served as minister of education from 2002 to 2007.
Horace Washington Dalley is a Jamaican educator and politician, representing the People's National Party (PNP). He was Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Clarendon Northern, serving from 1989 to 2007, and again from 2011 to 2020. He served as Minister of Land and Environment from 2001 to 2002, Minister of Labour and Social Security from 2002 to 2006, Minister of Health from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2015 to 2016.