Lobby group Advocates Network (AN) has renewed its call for the Speaker of the House of Representatives Juliet Holness to share the legal opinion of the attorney general on the tabling of reports.

There have been growing concerns regarding the handling of reports in Parliament by the Speaker of the House, after two reports were returned to the Auditor General Department recently due to an alleged breach of Section 13A of the Public Bodies Management and Accountability Act and Section 30 of the Financial Administration and Audit Act.

They were later tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, March 26 by the House Speaker. In tabling the reports, Holness said she would hold discussions with Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis regarding the tabling of reports in Parliament.

The Parliamentary Opposition, along with other civil society groups including the Jamaica Council of Churches (JCC), have repeatedly called for Holness to share the legal advice of the attorney general.

“The Advocates Network joins the Jamaica Council of Churches in expressing deep concerns about the direction in which the proceedings of the Parliament have transpired and how matters of a delicate nature have been handled as stated in their public statement on March 28, 2024. The AN also joins the call by the JCC, the Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP) and the National Integrity Action, the Jamaicans for Justice as well as other civil society organizations for the speaker of the House of Representatives to share the legal opinion from the Attorney General regarding the tabling reports,” the advocacy group said.

The Advocates Network also raised concerns about what it has described as the silence of the Constitutional Reform Committee regarding constitutional questions and other constitutional matters that are considered to be within the committee’s remit.

“Significantly, there is resounding silence on the promised public education programme to prepare Jamaicans for meaningful engagement in the constitutional reform process and the required referendum as we move to become a republic. We call on the CRC to update the nation on these matters and to expedite the process of public education,” Advocates Network said.

Following her appointment as House Speaker late last year, Holness announced changes to the treatment of reports from the Integrity Commission and the Auditor General’s Department.

She noted that there would be a discontinuation in tabling reports from the Auditor General’s Department immediately. Instead, they will be held for two months, which is in keeping with Section 30(2) of the Financial Administration and Audit Act.

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