Senate Approves Legislation to Establish Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority

Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator the Hon. Aubyn Hill

The Senate on October 9 approved legislation for the establishment of the Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority, which is a new entity to protect the rights of consumers and treat with competition matters in the country.

The Authority is being created through the merger of the Fair Trading Commission (FTC) and the Consumer Affairs Commission (CAC).

Contributing to the debate on the Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority Act, 2026 in the Senate, State Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister, Senator Abka Fitz Henley, said it creates uniformity and eliminates any perception of ambiguity both in terms of the mandate of the entities.

“The provisions of the Bill align with the intent of the Government to create a more fairer society and are consistent with our objective to put in place a fundamentally strong and consistent mechanism whereby the Jamaican consumer is protected and companies, including small businesses, have safeguards and means of recourse while at the same time fair competition is encouraged in our economy,” he said.

He said the legislation offers a sound platform for the establishment of a strong but fair mechanism to protect consumers and ensure that fairness in enforcement is meted out to those who are accused.

“I would invite the Jamaican public to contemplate eventual passage of the Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority Bill 2026 as not merely a process intended to increase efficiency by way of a merger but a vested effort by the Government to modernise and make stronger the institutional framework in Jamaica for safeguarding consumers and maintaining a climate where an equitable competitive environment is allowed to be the order of the day,” the Senator said.

He argued that the Jamaican consumers deserve strong safeguards against unlawful, unethical, and unfair business practices, while businesses “and our economy benefit when there is increased confidence that an equitable and balanced competitive environment exists. I’m of the view that the Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority Bill 2026 strikes the right balance”.

Closing the debate on the legislation, Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator the Hon. Aubyn Hill, said consultation was sought regarding the legislation, penalties and the issue of charges and imprisonment.

“When the matter of fees was being considered, we looked at the existing regulation that looks at tribunals and the fees, we did our research and we decided that in the current settings, these fees were set some years ago; they should be changed. We don’t believe that if you give a failure to answer a question, you should pay $2 million and possibly two years in jail,” he said.

“We dropped it to a million dollars and imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months… we have to find proportionality… for the crime… and the same thing for the rest of the issues here, and make sure that we have a much fairer smorgasbord of charges and imprisonment,” he noted, in response to queries from members of the Opposition.

Senator Hill said the Transformation Implementation Unit will be critical to the merger, noting that a Steering Committee has been established.

“We expect the transition to be quite quick, six months or less and we expect that once the transition is completed, that a much more efficient organisation will be in place. The Authority will be clear, and it will have more heft to do the work of both the FTC and CAC,” he said.

The merging of the Fair Trading Commission and the Consumer Affairs Commission is a part of the Government’s programme to transform the public sector, which emphasises combining entities that have similar functions.

The legislation was passed with three amendments.

Source: JIS