Work to review and amend the Firearms Act is now underway, with recommendations from various stakeholders now under consideration.

Justice Minister, Delroy Chuck provided an update to the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

Defence lawyers are pressing the Government to revisit the 15-year mandatory minimum sentences under the Firearms Prohibition, Restriction and Regulation Act.

They withdrew their services from criminal courts islandwide on September 28 and from the gun courts on September 29.

The Jamaican Bar Association and the Advocates Association of Jamaica say they are not seeking to scrap the minimum.

They want judges to have discretion in exceptional cases, incentives for guilty pleas restored, and fairer treatment of cases involving imitation firearms.

Government Senator, Abka Fitz-Henley, warns that removing the 15-year minimum would weaken the law, while the Justice Minister maintains the Act is working.

Following a meeting with the lawyers on October 2, Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness directed Minister Chuck to convene the legal reform committee to explore how the Act may be refined and strengthened.

The Justice Minister expects the submissions to be expedited for Cabinet deliberations.

Delroy Chuck, Minister of Justice.