By Kurt Campbell
[www.inewsguyana.com] – Alliance For Change (AFC) Member of Parliament Trevor Williams, who sits in the Parliamentary Select Committee on Public Utilities and Telecommunications Legislation, says the Bill is likely to be returned to the House before the August recess.
At a press conference on Thursday, April 24 Williams said, “The Alliance for Change looks forward to the Committee completing its work and presenting this legislation to the House before the recess period. It is estimated that another three- four sessions will see the Committee reading through the entire Bill clause by clause.”
According to the AFC MP, the Committee has gone through almost ¾ of the 95 page document and has received written submissions from almost all major stakeholders in the sector and awaits follow up oral presentations.
He said a number of amendments and changes have been recommended and issues flagged for later discussions.
Williams explained that the Committee has opted to delay discussions on Part VIII, Spectrum management, Numbering and Domain Name Management since a technical presentation covering these issues is scheduled to be done by experts.
According to him, issues currently engaging the committee include: powers of the Minister and fines and penalties for various offences.
The AFC had tabled a Telecommunications Amendment Bill following which the government tabled theirs. The Bill currently being considered is that of the government. This followed extensive consultations with all stakeholders.
