DESPITE a growing chorus against the ability of his Government to achieve the targeted five per cent growth in four years, Prime Minister Andrew Holness stuck to his guns yesterday, agreeing with his economic growth gurus that it is achievable.

Welcoming banker and Government Senator Aubyn Hill as the latest addition to the team at the helm of the Economic Growth Council (EGC), which resides in the Office of the Prime Minister, Holness expressed confidence in the council’s leadership.

He said it offers “confidence and liquidity”, as well as a determination to overcome the threat to growth posed by the country’s crime situation.

“We are seeing all the processes that suggest confidence and liquidity, and people also have to feel that there is a certain level of security,” Holness assured the media at a press briefing at Jamaica House to announce Hill’s appointment as the new executive director of the EGC.

He assured Jamaicans that the security concerns of his Administration were not limited to “big businesses”, and noted that, as part of the process, the Constabulary Force Act would be subject to changes to protect the rights of citizens.

“Security concerns are not just for big businesses. It is moreso a concern for the average Jamaican, and we are particularly concerned about the specific situation that plagues Montego Bay,” Holness said in responding to a question from the media about the threat of violence to the EGC’s growth prospects.

He said that the EGC has been monitoring the security agreements under the Stand-By Agreement with the International Monetary Fund.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/pm-welcomes-hill-to-egc-promises-more-focus-on-crime_119812