States Meeting Summary 19-23 July
23rd July 2021
Appointments
The Minister for Home Affairs, Deputy Gregory Guida, nominated Deputy Inna Gardiner as a member of the Jersey Police Authority, however the Deputy declined this appointment. The Minister will therefore nominate another individual for this position at the beginning of Tuesday morning's States Meeting.
Question time
Oral questions with notice
Non-executive States Members asked Ministers oral questions with notice for two hours and 20 minutes.
See what questions were asked by skipping to page 13 of the Order Paper.
Listen to Ministers' answers to questions by skipping to 15 minutes into Monday afternoon's meeting, a recording of which will be uploaded here within the next few days.
Oral questions without notice
After questions with notice, non-executive States Members asked the following Ministers questions without notice for 45 minutes (15 minutes each):
The Minister for Health and Social Services, Deputy Richard Renouf
The Minister for Home Affairs, Deputy Gregory Guida
The Chief Minister, Senator John Le Fondré
Catch up on questions without notice by skipping to two hours and 30 minutes into Monday afternoon's meeting.
Announcements
To begin Wednesday's States Meeting, the Deputy Bailiff welcomed the former Bishop of Dover and current Bishop of the Channel Islands, Trevor Willmott, to the States Chamber on his last formal visit to the Island.
Public business
Landlord licensing scheme
The Minister for the Environment, Deputy John Young, proposed to implement a landlord licensing scheme which would require landlords to licence a rented property. The States Assembly REJECTED the proposition.
See how States Members voted here.
To watch the full debate, skip to 30 minutes into Tuesday morning's meeting, a recording of which will be available to watch here within the next few days.
Allocation of the former police headquarters to Rouge Bouillon School
Deputy Inna Gardiner asked States Members to approve the allocation of the former States of Jersey Police headquarters to the expansion of Rouge Bouillon Primary School.
The Minister for Children & Education, Deputy Scott Wickenden, proposed an amendment to the proposition, requesting that other options for the School are considered before the final site is allocated. He also proposed that no other suitable Government-owned site should be identified for another purpose until the School site has been identified and project funding within the Government Plan is complete.
Deputy Inna Gardiner proposed an amendment to the Minister's amendment, requesting that no States-owned site is allocated for another purpose until the strategic review of the education of St. Helier and St. Saviour is complete, and sites are allocated and approved for primary schools according to the educational needs of Parishes.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the allocation of the former police headquarters to the expansion of Rouge Bouillon School, unless an alternative site is identified and allocated for a modern primary school in St. Helier.
See how States Members voted on the amended proposition here.
See how States voted on part a and part b of the Minister for Children and Education's approved amendment, as amended.
See how States Members voted on Deputy Gardiner's approved amendment to the amendment here.
To watch the full debate, skip to two hours and 15 minutes into Tuesday morning's meeting, which continued into Tuesday afternoon.
Income Tax, GST and Revenue Administration Law
The Minister for Treasury & Resources, Deputy Susie Pinel, deferred the proposed Income Tax, GST and Revenue Administration Law for debate until a later date.
Allocation of 2020 lottery ticket sales to Jersey charities
On behalf of the Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport & Culture, Assistant Minister Deputy Kirsten Morel proposed to equally allocate over £1.5m from 2020 lottery ticket sales to the Jersey Community Foundation and the Association for Jersey Charities for onward Island distribution, as amended by the Economic & International Affairs Scrutiny Panel.
The Economic & International Affairs Panel proposed for the funds allocated to the Association of Jersey Charities to be distributed solely to registered charities and, of the funds allocated to Jersey Community Foundation, 40% to arts, culture and heritage; 40% to sports & active lifestyle; and 20% to applied science or applied research in engineering, biology, ecology, physics, chemistry or mathematics provided that the funds are of benefit to Jersey and its residents.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport & Culture's proposition, as amended by the Economic & International Affairs Scrutiny Panel.
See how States Members voted on the Minister's amended proposition here.
To watch the full debate, skip to one hour and 30 minutes into Tuesday afternoon's meeting.
Change of principal laws relating to elections
Chair of the Privileges & Procedures Committee, Deputy Carina Alves, proposed a number of Articles as part of the Committee's proposed legal changes relating to the 2022 General Election. Included within this proposition is the creation of a Jersey Electoral Authority, changes to nomination process, making postal voting available to all Islanders whether on or off-Island and creating a 'none of the candidates' option on the ballot. These changes were proposed as amended by the Comité des Connétables' four amendments, which can be found here: 1st amendment, 2nd amendment, 3rd amendment and 4th amendment.
The States Assembly have voted to APPROVE the proposition as amended.
See how States Members voted on the amended proposition here.
Prohibition of discrimination against those with children looking for somewhere to live
The Minister for Social Security, Deputy Judy Martin, proposed to prohibit discrimination against those with children under 18 who are looking for a place to live.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister for Social Security's proposition.
See how States Members voted here.
Ban on single-use plastic bags
The Minister for Infrastructure, Deputy Kevin Lewis, proposed a law to ban retailers from using single-use plastic bags and restrict the use of plastic and paper 'bags for life' except at a specific price. The Minister proposed this new law as amended, requesting that it come into force within 12 months rather than 6, so that businesses have time to adapt to the new requirements and prevent the disposal of already manufactured stock.
Constable Simon Crowcroft's amendment requesting that the ban on the supply of single-use plastic bags does not apply to stocks of bags already existing in Jersey, was APPROVED on a standing vote (as amended by Deputy Inna Gardiner).
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister for Infrastructure's proposition, as amended. See how States Members voted on the amended proposition here.
Amendment to the States of Jersey Standing Orders
Chair of the Privileges and Procedures Committee, Deputy Carina Alves, proposed to amend the States of Jersey Standing Orders so that the minimum lodging period for a Government Plan is reduced to 10 weeks, as opposed to 12 weeks, during a year when a General Election is held.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Privileges and Procedure Committee's proposition to reduce the lodging period for a Government Plan during an election year.
See how States Members voted here.
Appointed Day of Access to Justice Law
Assistant Chief Minister, Constable Richard Buchanan, proposed the Appointed Day Act for the Access to Justice Law – requesting that the Law which provides a statutory basis for Jersey's legal aid scheme comes into force on the day after the Act is made and the day on which the first Legal Aid Guidelines come into effect.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposed Appointed Day Act for the Access to Justice Law.
See how States Members voted here.
Amendment to the Standing Orders relating to elections
Chair of the Privileges and Procedures Committee, Deputy Carina Alves, proposed amendments to the States of Jersey Standing Orders relating to elections, including to reduce the time between the appointment of a Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers to five days.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposed amendments to the Standing Orders.
See how States Members voted here.
This week's States Meeting will resume at 9:30am tomorrow, Thursday 22 July, with the debate on Constable Crowcroft's proposed protection of facilities at Springfield Park and Stadium.
Protection of facilities at Springfield Park and Stadium
Constable Simon Crowcroft proposed that the Minister for Infrastructure and the Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and Culture protect facilities at Springfield Park and Stadium, requesting that they:
Maintain the same amount of green space and trees in Springfield Stadium grounds when upgrading the pitch
Maintain the current lease agreements with Leeward Child Care Nursery on Springfield Stadium site
Review the use of the car park within the Robin Hood gyratory
Include Springfield Park and Stadium on the new Town 'hopper' bus service
Regularly meet with the residents' association and elected representatives of the area so that the needs of the local community can be taken into account for the current and future use of the Park and Stadium
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition, with the exception of
part (a)(ii), which requested to leave the children's playground in its present position and was WITHDRAWN.
See how States Members voted on green space and tree planting, the lease agreements with the nursery, and the use of the car park and the bus service.
Criminal Procedure regulations
The Minister for Home Affairs, Deputy Gregory Guida, proposed to bring into force regulations as part of the approved Criminal Procedure Law 2018 which replaces the old method by which eligible jurors are drawn up to account for the changes made in the Law.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition.
See how States Members voted here.
Criminal Procedure Law: supplementary amendments
The Minister proposed supplementary amendments to the revised Criminal Procedure Law 2018, including to ensure the Criminal Procedure Rules Committee can make the necessary rules to manage the operation of courts, as amended.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the regulations, as amended.
See how States Members voted here.
Criminal Procedure Law: Appointed Day
The Minister for Home Affairs proposed to bring into force the remaining provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law 2018 on 1 October 2021.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition on a standing vote.
Affordable homes in the South Hill development
Senator Sam Mézec proposed, in relation to the South Hill Development, that:
No residential properties should be sold on to buy-to-let investors
The Chief Minister use his powers under the Control of Work and Housing Law to put such conditions on the South Hill properties
The Council of Ministers aim to maximise homes designated for 'affordable purchase' via a report presented to the States Assembly by the end of August which will be used to guide the States of Jersey Development Company
The Minister for Treasury and Resources instruct the States of Jersey Development Company accordingly
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE all parts of the proposition. See how States Members voted on parts a and b, part c and part d.
Parental Bereavement Leave
Deputy Steve Ahier requested that the Minister for Social Security proposes to grant all employees the right to two weeks of Parental Bereavement Leave following the death of a child under the age of 18, and for the States to fully meet the cost of this scheme.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE Deputy Steve Ahier's proposition.
See how States Members voted here.
This week's States Meeting will resume at 9:30am tomorrow, Friday 23 July, to debate the Minister for Housing & Communities' proposed revised terms for the Les Quennevais Park Loan Scheme.
Les Quennevais Park Flats Loan Scheme: revised terms
The Minister for Housing and Communities, Deputy Russell Labey, proposed revised terms for the Les Quennevais Park Flats Loan Scheme, as amended. He requested that:
- The eligibility criteria to apply a retained savings limit changes to £20,000, irrespective of marital status or pensionable age
- The maximum amount available from the 99-Year Leaseholders Fund increases to £700,000 to provide funding for the operation of the loan scheme
- Loans are offered for a period of either 10 or 15 years
- There is a fixed interest rate of 1% per annum for the whole term of a loan
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister for Housing and Communities' proposition as amended.
See how States Members voted here.
Skip to 10 minutes into Friday's morning's meeting to watch the beginning of the debate, a recording of which will be available to view here shortly.
Carbon Neutral Jersey: in-committee debate
The States Assembly held an in-committee debate discussing Jersey Citizens' Assembly on Climate Change's report on 'Achieving Carbon Neutrality' in Jersey.
During an in-committee debate any States Member can speak more than once and the matter being debated is not voted on.
Skip to 25 minutes into Friday's meeting to watch the beginning of the debate.
Following the in-committee debate, the States Assembly adjourned for the summer recess and will return for its second session on Tuesday 14 September, at 9:30am.
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