Prime Minister Andrew Holness has declared that the  Government is crafting a plan to address the vexed issue of the high cost of living nationally.

The key areas that Holness says will be targeted for relief from high living expenses include food, education, transportation and housing.

Political observers have often been highly critical of the Government's perceived failure to address the daily expenses of ordinary Jamaicans.

While campaigning with Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate for North East St Ann, Matthew Samuda, last Friday, Holness said he has heard the cries of constituents about the need to address the cost of living.

The JLP leader told labourites at a spot meeting in Ocho Rios, St Ann on Friday night that the Administration has spent "the last eight years fixing the country's economy".

He said during that period of time many segments of the economy made "good gains", including public sector workers who benefitted from increased wages under the compensation review.

Other persons, said Holness, were able to get access to housing, and benefitted from better roads and better heathcare.

"But there is a certain segment of the society who have not received the benefits and dividends of the economy, and those people speak loudly," Holness said, pointing to a young lady who he said stopped him on the campaign trail and told him to address the cost of living.

The JLP leader admitted that, "The cost of living has gone sky high since COVID.... That cost of living is having an impact on how people feel about the wages they earn and about their future."

Given those overwhelming concerns, Holness said the Government will develop a plan to first tackle the high cost of food.

"We're gonna develop a plan to ensure that persons who cannot afford what we consider to be the basic necessity for nutrition, that we are able to give them some support so that they can get the basic necessary nutrition in their homes," he indicated.

Turning to the cost of education, the prime minister noted that some public schools are charging high school fees although the Government abolished the paying of tuition in the public school system.

"But the schools have found a way to go around it (tuition-free education). All primary schools now charging all kinds of fees," Holness said, adding that the expenses have contributed to the high cost of living for persons.

He promised to deal with the overall situation relative to school tuitions; however, he did not elaborate on how he will address it.

Holness also outlined plans to deal with the cost of transportation, stating that it has already started with the importation of more buses for the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC).

With more buses to be imported, he said they will not only serve the urban areas of Kingston and St Andrew, as well Montego Bay, St James, but towns like Ocho Rios in St Ann and May Pen in Clarendon.

For housing, the prime minister said plans are afoot to increase the pace that many of the 43,000 housing solutions being constructed by the National Housing Trust (NHT) are placed on the market.

"They not going to be houses in the $20 million and $25 million range.

"We're looking for houses in the $13 (million) and $14 million range that a lot of people who are working in hotel and BPO (business process outsourcing sector), hairdresser and mechanic can afford...," Holness stated.