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New Falmouth Resorts Limited is facing a mounting $26.3-million tax bill on more than 260 acres of prime land, which is now at the centre of a public dispute between Coopers Pen residents and the company. Official Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) records obtained by The Gleaner reveal that the company, which acquired the land in March 2006, has failed to pay property taxes for six consecutive years since 2020, racking up more than $2 million in penalties. Tax on the land, currently valued at $390 million, amounts to $3.4 million annually.

Grace Baston, the lead implementer behind the Grade Seven Academy Reading initiative at Holy Trinity High School in Kingston, could not be more pleased with the latest findings from the third student-administered assessment of grade-eight students this year. Compared with the first assessment, the latest results show a 91.7 per cent improvement, while less than one per cent of students declined and 7.5 per cent remained at the same level. The findings are contained in the executive summary for the 2026 academic year.

The 2026 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) English language examination success of young grades 8 and 9 students Andrelissa Brown and Tegan Brown of St Thomas Technical High School continues to demonstrate how students adjudged to be ‘slow learners’ can shine as a result of strategic interventions.

One hundred and thirty-one persons are set to receive Dr Barry Wint Memorial Scholarships this year, pushing the total number of recipients to more than 800 since the programme began in 2024. The developmental scholarships are aimed at training persons to return to the healthcare sector and help in needed areas of a period of time.

Three passengers counting their blessings, a wrecked Mitsubishi Pajero and a dead cow were the grim remnants of a frightening late-night collision last week on the May Pen-to-Mandeville leg of the toll highway. Stray cattle had breached the fencing and wandered onto the dark roadway, where vehicles travel at speeds of up to 110 mph.

Loud cheers, competitive energy and vibrant musical performances filled the air last Friday as the Manchester Division southern zone summer camp ended with an action-packed sports day and talent concert which, according to zone commander Inspector Seanene Steers, “was a transformative week for 70 local youth”. According to Steers, the week-long camp provided “young people from across the division with a dynamic blend of practical life skills, personal development, and community connection”.

A business development liaison officer has been appointed by the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) to spur investment in the Jamaican tourism industry from the diaspora. Appointed to the post is Vance Carter, a former vice-consul at the Jamaican Consulate in Miami. He will serve as business development officer with responsibility for the Jamaican diaspora in the United States (US). Carter took up his position on August 17.

WESTERN BUREAU: “Where are you, Mr Prime Minister? Where are you? We need help.” It was the anguished cry from Cooper’s Pen, on Saturday morning as residents, some already homeless and others fearful that their houses could be next, returned to the streets demanding intervention and relocation in the wake of a demolition exercise that has shaken the Trelawny community. Dressed in white and armed with placards, the residents gathered along the North Coast Highway from early morning, insisting that they are no longer looking merely for temporary assistance.

For students starting at a new school, the first day holds many questions: Will they see any familiar faces? Who will they sit with at lunch? Who will they play with at recess? “I’m this much nervous,” said Iman Fair-Seldon, five, holding her hands about four inches (10 centimetres) apart. Iman will start first grade next month at a new school in southern New Jersey, near Philadelphia. Despite the nerves, she said she is excited to make new friends.

People’s National Party (PNP) President Mark Golding has embraced democratic socialism, the political philosophy championed by former PNP leader and Prime Minister Michael Manley in the 1970s, declaring that changing times are creating renewed interest in the ideology. Golding, addressing the PNP’s Greendale Divisional Conference on Thursday night, said the philosophy was gaining traction even in the United States (US), where, he argued, there was growing recognition of the need for governments to put people’s interests ahead of those of powerful individuals and groups.

Jamaican News