KINGSTON, Jamaica – Prime Minister Andrew Holness new 19-member cabinet was sworn into office on Wednesday, less than 48 hours after he himself had created history by becoming the first JLP candidate to be sworn in as prime minister in Jamaica for three consecutive five-year terms.
Members of the new Jamaica Cabinet at the swearing ceremony on Wednesday“Today we begin the work on delivering on the mandate as we gather to swear in the women and men who will serve as ministers of the government of Jamaica,” Holness told the ceremony following his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) victory at the polls on September 3.
“This is indeed a milestone and it is right that we pause to celebrate the personal journeys that have brought each of you here,” he said, adding that beyond the ceremony and moment of pride “let us be clear this is not a time to grow comfortable.
“It is a time to recommit to humility, to service and to performance,” he said, adding that the Jamaican people “have spoken loudly and clearly, they have looked beyond the rhetoric, they have looked beyond tradition, they have focused and rewarded performance”.
Holness new cabinet, remained almost identical to the one that had governed the country over the past 10 years, with the return of Dr. Andrew Wheatley and Robert Montague and the removal of Marlene Malahoo Forte, as the Attorney General and the Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs, who had been in that position since January 2022.
Wheatley and Montague’s return to the Cabinet came after they had both resigned following different scandals during their tenure.
Wheatley had been forced to resign in 2018 as minister of energy, science and technology due to a corruption scandal that engulfed a number of entities under his portfolio. This time around, he will have responsibility for science, technology and special projects as Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister.
Montague, who had resigned in March 2022 following a damning Integrity Commission report on the Firearm Licensing Authority that cited him for knowingly granting firearm permits to six people with criminal traces while he was national security minister, was sworn in as Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Infrastructure Development responsible for land titling and settlements.
Former minister without portfolio, Matthew Samuda, has been sworn in as the Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change.
In his brief address to the ceremony, Governor General Sir Patrick Allen told the new Cabinet members that their service must be marked by “diligence, transparency and the genuine desire to uplift the most vulnerable.
“Govern so that your legacy is not measured by popularity, but by the positive differences felt in the daily lives of Jamaicans,” he added.
The following is the list of the Cabinet of Prime Minister Andrew Holness.
*Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Minister of Economic Growth and Infrastructure Development – Dr Andrew Holness
*Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister responsible for Efficiency, Innovation and Digital Transformation – Audrey Marks
*Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister responsible for Science, Technology and Special Projects – Andrew Wheatley
*Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Infrastructure Development responsible for Land Titling and Settlements – Robert Montague
*Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Infrastructure Development with responsibility for Works – Robert Morgan
*Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security and Peace – Dr Horace Chang
*Minister of Finance and the Public Service – Fayval Williams
*Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment, and Sport – Olivia Grange
*Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade – Senator Kamina Johnson Smith
*Minister of Tourism – Edmund Bartlett
*Minister of Health and Wellness – Dr Christopher Tufton
*Minister of Justice, Legal and Constitutional Affairs – Delroy Chuck
*Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information – Senator Dana Morris Dixon
*Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce – Senator Aubyn Hill
*Minister of Local Government and Rural Development – Desmond McKenzie
*Minister of Labour and Social Security – Pearnel Charles Jr
*Minister of Transport, Telecommunications and Energy – Daryl Vaz
*Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining – Floyd Green
*Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change – Matthew Samuda
