Jamaican Government Concedes Certificates of Exemption Wrongly Issued in Goat Islands Case

Here’s a quick update on the court case challenging Government’s denial of information to the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) regarding a possible transshipment port in Goat Islands in the Portland Bight Protected Area. I believe the judicial review continues tomorrow. Here is JET’s press release.

The Supreme Court of Jamaica today heard submissions from the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) concerning the issuance of Certificates of Exemption under the Access to Information Act with regard to documents requested for the proposed Goat Islands port facility in the Portland Bight Protected Area.

The Certificates of Exemption had been issued in January and May 2014 by the Minister of Finance and Planning, the Hon. Peter Phillips. JET’s legal team, led by Hugh Small, QC, supported by JET environmental staff attorneys Danielle Andrade and Lisa Russell, successfully argued before the Hon. Mrs Justice Sharon George that the Certificates of Exemption were incorrectly issued by the Minister of Finance and Planning.

Carlene Larmond representing the Attorney General and the Ministry of Finance and Planning conceded the Minister had no authority to issue the Certificates.

“We are happy to settle this first point concerning the proper jurisdiction for issuing Certificates of Exemption,” said Danielle Andrade, JET’s Legal Director. “We are anxious for the Court to rule on the other procedural and substantive issues in our case.”

The issue of costs in relation to the case against the Minister of Finance and Planning is to be decided tomorrow morning and the case in relation to the Port Authority’s refusal to provide information will be heard on June 3rd and 4th, 2015.

The Certificates of Exemption issued by the Minister of Finance and Planning sought to declare the documents requested by JET exempt from disclosure under the provisions of the Access to Information (ATI) Act.

For more information please contact:
Diana McCaulay – 469-1315 or Danielle Andrade – 392-7341
—
Diana McCaulay

Chief Executive Officer
Jamaica Environment Trust
Earth House, 11 Waterloo Road, Kingston 10, Jamaica, W.I.
t| +1876 960 3693
w| http://www.jamentrust.org
e| jamentrust@cwjamaica.com

Donate to JET online: http://www.jamentrust.org/how-you-can-help.html