President of the Senate Tom Tavares-Finson has defended the decision not to table the controversial Integrity Commission report involving the Firearm Licensing Authority (FLA), insisting that Parliament “will not bow to intimidation or threat” amid mounting criticism from the Opposition.

He also defended Speaker of the House Juliet Holness against accusations that she alone was responsible for delaying the report, arguing that the decision was made jointly by Parliament’s presiding officers after consultation with legal advisers.

Speaking during Friday’s sitting of the Senate after Opposition Senator Lambert Brown questioned whether other Integrity Commission reports had been submitted to Parliament but not tabled, Tavares-Finson confirmed that a report concerning the FLA had been received on March 30, 2026, but remained untabled.

The issue has sparked days of political tension and public debate after Opposition figures accused Parliament of delaying the release of a report said to contain serious findings relating to governance and alleged wrongdoing at the FLA.

In recent days, criticism has increasingly focused on House Speaker Juliet Holness, with Opposition Leader Mark Golding arguing earlier this week that Parliament was undermining the purpose of the Integrity Commission Act by failing to promptly table the report.

Tavares-Finson strongly rejected suggestions that the speaker was acting unilaterally or improperly.

“I wish to make it clear. I wish to make it abundantly clear that the decision not to table this specific report was not taken by the Speaker of the House, the honourable Juliet Holness, in isolation. That decision was taken by the presiding officers. That is to say, myself as president of the Senate and the speaker of the house, in consultation with the clerk and the legal officers of the Parliament,” he added.

He accused critics of unfairly targeting the speaker and attempting to damage her public standing.

“Persons who are well aware of this, however, have sought to ascribe the decision as not to table the report solely to the speaker of the house in yet another attempt to besmirch her authority and tarnish her reputation. I’m not surprised by these attacks, however, as there is a long history of attacking strong women in leadership in this country by many sections of our society,” he argued.

Tavares-Finson also defended the legality of the decision not to immediately table the report, insisting that the Integrity Commission Act does not require presiding officers to lay reports before Parliament within any fixed timeframe.

“It is to be noted that the legislation, that is to say the Integrity Commission Act, does not impose an obligation on the presiding officers to table reports received within any specific time or indeed at all, but rather states that the commission is to submit reports to the Parliament for tabling. The decision to table or not and when to table rests with the presiding officers of the Parliament,” he added.

Central to the Government’s defence has been the existence of ongoing court proceedings related to the report. Tavares-Finson said Parliament took the view that the matter should be allowed to proceed further before the document was tabled publicly.

“There is currently a matter before the court seeking non-disclosure of the report and the view was taken, the view was taken that those proceedings should move ahead until it became clear where the court was heading in this matter and we determined that the document ought not to be tabled until the issue in the court was further ventilated,” he explained.

He also disclosed that he and the speaker had received correspondence from Opposition Leader Mark Golding threatening legal action if the report was not tabled at the next sitting of Parliament.

“I consider this an unprecedented threat to the administration of Parliament, and the conduct which I believe is beneath the dignity of the office of the leader of the Opposition,” Tavares-Finson declared.

“Without saying too much, I would just indicate that the presiding officers, the honourable speaker of the House of Representatives, and myself as president of the Senate, will not bow to any intimidation or threat, but will administer the affairs of the Parliament in accordance with established protocols, the standing orders, and the constitution of Jamaica,” he added.