KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has dismissed claims by the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) that parliamentary democracy is under threat, describing the claims as “barefaced and unadulterated lies” intended to divert attention from what it called the Opposition’s own “disruptive” conduct in the House of Representatives.

In a statement issued Thursday, the party said, “The governing Jamaica Labour Party rejects the PNP’s move to utter a series of barefaced and unadulterated lies in a bid to distract from public backlash it is receiving for its consistently disruptive and outrageous conduct in the Parliament.”

The JLP was responding to concerns raised earlier Thursday by the PNP over Tuesday’s sitting of the House of Representatives. The Opposition accused the Government of undermining Parliament’s constitutional role as the country’s principal forum for accountability, scrutiny and debate.

READ: Silencing Opposition MPs threatens Jamaica’s parliamentary democracy, says PNP

The PNP cited three incidents to support its claims. It alleged that the Leader of Opposition Business, Phillip Paulwell, was prevented from raising a procedural matter regarding the absence of the Integrity Commission’s latest report from the order paper. It also claimed the speaker failed to recognise Opposition calls for a division during consideration of a Regulations Committee report, and said Government members responded to procedural concerns raised by St James South MP Nekeisha Burchell with personal attacks.

The Opposition further criticised comments allegedly made by a senior government member to Burchell, arguing that they could reasonably be interpreted as threatening and intimidating.

However, the JLP rejected those assertions, maintaining that the PNP was attempting to shift focus away from its own conduct in the House.

“In the interest of Jamaica, the PNP should commit to conducting itself in a more appropriate manner,” the JLP said.