Jamaica’s bill to kickstart the transition to a republic and remove King of England as head of state is ready to be tabled in parliament as early as next week according to the Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Marlene Malahoo Forte.

Forte said the Bill has gone through several revisions and when passed into law, will abolish the constitutional monarchy and replace the British Monarchy with a Jamaican president – as Jamaica’s formal head of state..

“I am pleased to inform this Honourable House and the people of Jamaica that review of the Constitutional (Amendment) (Republic [of Jamaica]) Bill is far advanced. It is quite possible to complete the remaining steps for the Bill to be tabled as early as next week – before the Christmas break,” Malahoo Forte said.

Last year, Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness said it was time for the government to move forward with “speed” to transition to a republic.

“It is time that Jamaica becomes a republic. For us, the process is not simple, and we have known this since we started on this journey. And we are making sure that we check every box as we move deliberately in that regard,” Holness said.

“So, I’m saying to you minister (Malahoo Forte), please move ahead with speed and alacrity on this matter, Jamaica must become a republic.”

Malahoo Forte has outlined that the proposed bill contains 36 clauses.