CABINET when it met last Tuesday continued its focus on its agenda for legislations to be enacted during the Ninth Parliament.

This according to Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS) Dr Roger Luncheon at his weekly post-Cabinet press briefing yesterday at the Office of the President, Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Georgetown.

He noted, “The soon onset of the parliamentary recess that is from the first week in August until October, of course, has implications for the tabling of bills, particularly those intended for enactment before the commencement of the recess.”

The Cabinet Secretary said amendments to the several bills were considered and allowed tabling yesterday.

He said the Administration of Justice Bill Number Two which reflects Cabinet’s concern about the relative impunity with which public property and private property is damaged and destroyed during vehicular accidents.

?nd we would seek to correct at least the impunity aspect,” he stressed.

Alluding to questions about the legislation concerning damage to public property, he observed that the investment in infrastructure when the original Act was put in place was nothing compared to what it is today.

The fact is there is much more to damage now. The definition of public property then and now differs significantly so the Act had to be amended,” he insisted.

Secondly, I do not believe that any of our legislation that prescribed penalties, especially fines, established 20 to 30 years ago are of any relevance in so far as today is concerned,” the Cabinet Secretary said.

? major part of the intervention here has been to make fines and penalties more appropriate,” he stressed.

Another bill is the Sexual Offence Bill, which the HPS noted is also important since it introduces a much more modern approach to the definition and the treatment of sexual offences such as rape and engagements between husbands and wives.

?lso the last of the five children’s bills would be tabled at that session,” Dr Luncheon disclosed.

Additionally, he revealed that Cabinet examined a number of other draft bills that would be laid after the recommencement of Parliament in October.

He said these deal specifically with the Justice Sector Reform Project and its legislation to which the government was committed and those in the financial sector, including electronic registration and incorporation of businesses.

The intention here is to make businesses in Guyana more competitive,” he pointed out.

He contended that the electoral system is one of the very important elements of the legislative environment that would have to be put in place for the Local Government Elections to take place.

It would need to be in place for the commencement of voter education because an entirely new electoral system has been agreed to, and is now going to be the basis under which the Local Government Elections will be held,” he reminded.

He added, “I still am hopeful that the legislative aspect would not be the actually source of any delays.”