States Meeting summary: 24 - 25 June
States Assembly
25 June 2025
AnnouncementThe Deputy Bailiff started the meeting by announcing the death of former Greffier and Jurat, Catherine Mary Newcombe, known as Mary Newcombe. Jurat Newcombe was the first female Greffier of the States, appointed in 2000 after beginning her career with the States Greffe as a Committee Clerk in 1968.
Question Time
Questions with notice
The Meeting began with Ministers answering States Members’ questions with notice.
Skip to page 8 of the Order Paper to find out which questions were asked and watch from 11 minutes into this morning’s recording to hear questions with notice in full.
Questions without notice
States Members then asked the Minister for Children and Families, Connétable Richard Vibert; the Minister for Education and Lifelong Learning, Deputy Rob Ward; and the Chief Minister and the Chief Minister, Deputy Lyndon Farnham, questions without notice for 15 minutes each.
Skip to 2 hours and 32 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the beginning of questions without notice, and the start of this afternoon’s recording for the final questions to the Chief Minister.
Public Business
P.27 Draft Elections (Electoral Registers) (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-.
The Privileges and Procedures Committee proposed amendments to the Elections (Jersey) Law, which will allow for Automatic Voter Registration to be introduced with the aim of removing some of the barriers to voting. PPC accepted the following amendments:
- The Committee’s own Amendment to allow candidates to access the Electoral Register during campaigning, with provision for Islanders to opt out of appearing on the list given to candidates.
- The Comité des Connétables Amendment to ensure voter register on an Electoral Roll cannot be moved to a different register during an election period.
- The Comité des Connétables Amendment which would mean a person’s decision to opt out of the candidates’ list would carry through if that person moved from one electoral district to another.
Skip to 8 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.28 Draft Elections (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-
The Privileges and Procedures Committee proposed further amendments to the Elections (Jersey) Law and other elections legislation.
These are in response to the Report of the Jersey Electoral Authority, and to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Election Observers Mission.
They include allowing all prisoners, including those sentenced to more than four years, being allowed to vote; and extending the powers of the Jersey Electoral Authority in relation to the resolution of disputes to cover complaints made by the public as well as by candidates.
The States Assembly voted on the Articles as follows:
- Articles 1 and 2: changes to the definition of cancelled and spoilt ballot papers. The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Articles with a Standing Vote.
- Article 3: removing the provision disqualifying prisoners from voting. The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Article with 28 votes for, 15 votes against and 1 abstention.
- Article 4: replacing ‘resident’ with ‘ordinarily resident’. The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Article, as amended, with 36 votes for, 8 votes against and no abstentions.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Deputy’s Amendment with 30 votes for, 16 votes against and no abstentions.
Skip 1 hour into this afternoon’s recording to watch the beginning of the debate, including the Amendment.
Wednesday 25 June
P.28 Draft Elections (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-
The Meeting began with the continuation of the debate into the Privileges and Procedures Committee proposal for further amendments to the Elections (Jersey) Law and other elections legislation.
These are in response to the Report of the Jersey Electoral Authority, and to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Election Observers Mission.They included allowing all prisoners, including those sentenced to more than four years, being allowed to vote; and extending the powers of the Jersey Electoral Authority in relation to the resolution of disputes.
The Chair of PPC asked to withdraw article 5 which would have allowed members of the public to make complaints to the JEA.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT Article 20, in Second Reading, which would have required postal votes to arrive three days prior to the election date.
The States Assembly then voted to APPROVE the Committee’s Proposition, as amended, with 44 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
Watch from the beginning of this morning’s recording to watch the conclusion of the debate.
P.37 Draft Single-Use Plastics etc. (Restrictions) Law (Jersey) Amendment Regulations 202-.
The Minister for Infrastructure, Connétable Andy Jehan, proposed an amendment to the Single-Use Plastics Law to make an exception for the 70p per recyclable plastic or paper bag charge for those supplied wholesale by a trader, and for those supplied second-hand under a trader’s bag reuse scheme.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister’s Proposition with 44 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 1 hour and 43 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.39 Draft Proceeds of Crime (Jersey) Amendment Regulations 202-.
The Minister for External Relations, Deputy Ian Gorst, proposed an amendment to the Proceeds of Crime Law which would allow the Financial Intelligence Unit to disclose information about suspected criminal conduct to the Minister for the purposes of the exercise of the Minister’s functions under the Sanctions and Asset-Freezing Law.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister’s Proposition with 44 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 1 hour and 58 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.46 Non-Elected Members on Scrutiny Panel and change in Troy Rule.
Deputy Moz Scott proposed that non-States Members should be permitted to be appointed to Scrutiny Panels as Lay-Members provided that the number of non-States Members on the Panel would not exceed 50% of the total membership.
This was REJECTED by the Assembly, 42 votes against, 3 votes for, 0 abstentions
The Deputy also proposed that the number of Ministers and Assistant Ministers allowed under the States of Jersey Law be increased from 21 to 25.
This was REJECTED with 44 votes against, 1 vote for, and 0 abstentions.
Skip 2 hours and 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
Personal Statement
The Meeting ended with the Chair of PPC, Constable Karen Shenton-Stone who made a personal statement to announce her resignation as Chair.
Adjournment
The States Assembly then adjourned and will reconvene at 9:30am on Tuesday 8 July 2025.
