Serving the manifestos

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I am writing with reference to the article, “PNP to serve up its ‘Manifesto Lite’,” published in The Gleaner August 23.

‘Manifesto Lite’ was announced on Friday, August 22, and released on Monday, August 25. Manifesto Lite is a condensed version of its 70-page policy document released earlier this month, mixed with new proposals.

There are many professional speakers and writers, who are ready to give you their opinions why the PNP is condensing its 70-page policy document mentioned above.

There are no laws in the United Kingdom and Jamaica that prevent political parties from condensing or changing their policy manifestos after they have been launched but before an election. Election manifestos are not legally binding.

Political parties in Jamaica, such as the People’s National Party ( PNP) and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), operate without legal restrictions on manifesto changes. Recent media commentary highlights that parties often release manifestos late in the campaign, and may even release a summary, or “manifesto lite,” of their full document.

Why manifestos can be changed. Some of the reasons are a manifesto is a political, not legal, document. Political pressure is the primary motivator. Circumstances can shift. A party may modify its stance in response to significant events, new data, or shifts in public opinion during the election campaign.

A manifesto, which is sometimes called policy document, is not considered a legally binding contract in either country. However, breaking manifesto promises can result in significant political pressure and consequences from the electorate.

So, there is no legal mandate to either stop or prevent the PNP or the JLP from condensing or changing their manifestos after they have been released before the election.

There are three major political parties in England. The Labour, Conservative (Tories) and Liberal Democrats parties. The United Kingdom (UK) had a 2024 general election, scheduled for July 4, 2024.

The Labour Party launched their manifesto on June 13, 2024, the Conservative on June 11, 2024, and the Liberal Democrats on June 10, 2024. The three major political parties launched their manifestos within approximately 30 days before the election.

However, both in the UK and Jamaica, there is no “specific law” that mandates when manifestos must be launched before an election. It is up to each political party to decide when they release their document.

In practice, parties usually publish their manifestos during the official campaign period to set out their policies for voters.

Finally, I hope the electors to make informed decision when they vote.

CARGILL KELLY