CDF committee reviews 2026-27 constituency projects and seeks clarity on hurricane fund transfer

Parliament’s Constituency Development Fund Committee on May 19, 2026 reviewed a wide slate of proposed constituency projects for the 2026-27 period, including allocations for education, sports, economic support, social housing, welfare and emergency assistance, disaster mitigation and physical infrastructure.

The meeting also noted that a draft report dealing with constituency assistant salaries and the CDF allocation had been prepared and circulated. Members were told the document was ready for review and comment, but the committee later agreed to defer its consideration until the next sitting.

Projects read into the record covered constituencies in St Andrew, St Catherine, Clarendon, Manchester, St Elizabeth, St Mary, St Ann, St James, Hanover, Trelawny, Westmoreland and Kingston. Many were listed with the Social Development Commission as implementing agency, while some road, water, disaster mitigation and infrastructure items were assigned to municipal corporations.

Among the items mentioned were education support funds, summer reading camps, administrative assistant funding, sports development programmes, small business and economic enablement assistance, additional social housing, and welfare and emergency programmes. Physical infrastructure proposals included work such as a complex upgrade in St Catherine North Western, football field renovation in Clarendon North Central, and road patching in St Elizabeth South Eastern.

The committee spent extended time on a proposed reallocation involving St Mary Western. Member of Parliament Robert Montague sought approval to move $3,554,215.47 from funds previously approved for Hurricane Beryl relief to support ongoing recovery under Hurricane Melissa. Members raised concerns about whether money provided specifically for one hurricane could be transferred to another disaster response, especially since the funds had come from a ministry and were being managed through the CDF.

The committee agreed to seek further guidance before deciding on that request. Members also briefly raised the issue of maintaining community sporting fields, with discussion to continue at the next meeting. The next sitting was set for June 9, and the meeting was adjourned shortly before Parliament was due to begin.