Supreme Court Justice Indra Charles' ruling that Marathon MP Jerome Fitzgerald breached the constitutional right to privacy of the environmental group Save The Bays (STB) when he read its private emails in Parliament is "wrong on the facts and the law", the government said in a statement.
"The judgement delivered today (Tuesday) in the matter of parliamentary privilege and involving the Minister of Foreign Affairs [Fred Mitchell] and the Minister of Education [Jerome Fitzgerald] is being carefully studied by the government," read the statement.
"The government awaits formal advice on the effect of the judgment, but preliminarily is of the view that any finding that there was a breach of the constitutional rights of anyone in this matter is a decision which is wrong on the facts and the law."
The government added, "While due respect must be given to the role of the courts to adjudicate fundamental rights, the privilege of parliamentarians to speak freely within Parliament is inviolate, and it is the intention of the government to seek to defend the law, which now obtains on the subject, and to preserve the freedom of members of Parliament to speak freely in the houses of Parliament."
The ruling was handed down yesterday morning.
Charles said Fitzgerald's disclosure of STB's private information in Parliament, which he claimed he got from his "political garbage can", was a "deliberate act made to avoid scrutiny by purporting to hide behind the cloak of parliamentary privilege".
However, Charles said Mitchell was not in breach.
Charles granted a permanent injunction prohibiting Fitzgerald from disclosing or publishing any private information belonging to STB and ordered that Fitzgerald destroy and delete all material within 14 days.
She also ordered that the MP provide an affidavit of compliance within the same time period.
Attorney Loren Klein, who represents the respondents, including the Office of the Attorney General, was granted a stay of the order pending an appeal.
In its statement, the government noted the status quo remains pending the hearing and determination of the appeal.
The applicants in the matter were the Coalition to Protect Clifton Bay (Save The Bays); Zachary Bacon, the brother of hedge fund billionaire Louis Bacon, a resident of Lyford Cay; STB Director of Legal Affairs Fred Smith; and lawyer Ferron Bethell.
In March, Fitzgerald read from private and confidential emails and other documents belonging to STB as he made a case the group was part of a plot to destabilize the government.
Mitchell also referenced the emails in Parliament in March.
STB applied and was granted an ex parte injunction in April to prevent further disclosure of its emails ahead of a substantive hearing.
Speaker of the House of Assembly Dr. Kendal Major condemned the order, calling it a "blatant breach of parliamentary privilege" and said it violated the "principle of the separation of powers critical to parliamentary democracy".
Fitzgerald moved a motion for the matter to be sent before the House's Committee of Privilege.
He recommended that the judge be made to appear before the committee to answer for the injunction, a move Major later said would be a "gross violation" of the separation of powers.
The matter remains before the committee.
In her ruling, Charles said the Supreme Court has the "original jurisdiction" to decide over breaches of the constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, and Parliament cannot change the scope or divest the court of this original jurisdiction by legislation.
She also said the government cannot rely on the "shield of parliamentary privilege to oust the jurisdiction of the court when a person alleges a breach of the constitution".

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