THE MOTION brought by Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Ronald Thwaites for Parliament to facilitate the expansion of certifying facilities for lawyers and medical doctors is long overdue.

Thwaites wants the Ministry of Education to consult with the health and justice ministries to extend facilities for training and certification of new members of the two professions.

While we welcome Thwaites' motion, The Gavel is deeply dissatisfied that the member's opening to the motion was hardly more than an exercise in eloquence.

When one considers that the motion has been on the Order Paper since May 2008, one would have thought that the Central Kingston MP would have furnished the House with data and case studies to press home his case for an expansion of space for these facilities.

126 spaces

Indeed, Thwaites spoke to the establishment of a faculty of law at the University of Technology. He also expressed concern that of the 126 spaces at the Norman Manley Law School - the only certifying law facility on the island - 75 of them were reserved for students who read for their law degrees at the University of the West Indies.

Thwaites also noted that many Jamaican students read for law degrees at foreign institutions, which means that much-needed foreign exchange is spent in these pursuits.

He claimed that when students were unable to get certified as lawyers, they migrated, taking with them an important skill, the result of which is the retardation of the already ailing justice system.

But while we do not dispute the claims made by Thwaites, we are disappointed that he gave the Parliament a half-baked pie. There were few facts and figures, and there was no cross-border or other form of comparative analysis.

The Gavel is comforted by the fact that we are not alone in the view that Thwaites did not give the House enough. We recall that West St Andrew Member of Parliament Anthony Hylton attempted to speak on the issue and was told by the Speaker that the debate would continue at a later date.

get armed with data

The Speaker, Delroy Chuck, quite appropriately advised that members who intended to participate in the debate turn up to Parliament armed with data to support positions being advanced.

We welcome the suggestion from the Speaker and hope that MPs find his words useful. The Gavel has been yearning for the days when shallow debates inside Gordon House would cease.

Certainly, Thwaites' motion, though timely, would have been more appropriate in the context of a national tracer study of university graduates and a national labour-market survey, which would highlight the areas of employment that are needed locally and for export; the cost of training persons for each job in the labour market; and, the marginal benefit to be gained from exporting the excess labour.

Mindful that Thwaites will have to close the debate soon, and that there will be a few speakers contributing to same, The Gavel serves notice that a mere exercise of oratory skills will not be sufficient for this or any other motion.

We would certainly want to be exposed to case studies in countries and major cities that have gone the route of expanding certification spaces.

not trivial

The Gavel believes we cannot afford to treat this issue as a trivial one, as it goes to the core of building human capital - a fundamental platform for human development.

We, therefore, sit patiently and wait for the debate to continue. We also believe that it is important for Education Minister Andrew Holness, former minister Maxine Henry-Wilson, Health Minister Rudyard Spencer, Labour and Social Security Minister Pearnel Charles, and Investment and Commence Minister Karl Samuda to speak in this debate.

There is also room for Opposition Spokesperson with responsibility for Youth, Lisa Hanna, and her development colleague, Ian Hayles, to use this as an opportunity to shine.

But be warned: The Gavel hits hard; no shallow debate will be tolerated.

thegavel@gleanerjm.com