States Meeting summary: 25-29 November
29 November 2024
Monday 25 November
Question Time
Questions with notice
This week’s States Meeting began with Ministers answering States Members’ questions with notice.
Skip to page 9 of the Order Paper to find out which questions were asked and watch from 11 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to hear questions with notice in full.
Questions without notice
States Members then asked the Minister for Infrastructure, Connétable Andy Jehan, Minister for Housing, Deputy Sam Mézec and the Chief Minister, Deputy Lyndon Farnham, questions without notice for 15 minutes each.
Skip to 2 hours and 16 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch questions without notice in full.
Tuesday 26 November
Public Business
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028
This morning’s sessions began with a proposal from the Council of Ministers that the States Assembly approve their Government Budget 2025-2028, as amended.
There were 29 amendments lodged, ten of which were accepted or partially accepted by the Council of Ministers, and two were withdrawn.
Skip to 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to learn which amendments were accepted or partially accepted by the Council of Ministers.
Please note: The amendments or parts of amendments which have not been accepted are debated in the order in which they effect the proposed Budget, not necessarily in the order in which they were lodged.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 - twenty-fifth amendment
Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to the Government Budget asking for a Stamp Duty holiday in 2025 that would allow properties up to a value of £700,000 to pay no Stamp Duty, with Stamp Duty levied at 2.5% on properties valued between £700,000 and £1million, and a taper for properties valued between £1million and £1.2million. Properties over £1.2million will remain subject to Stamp Duty at the full rate.
A further amendment from the Deputy asked to exclude buy-to-let properties, reducing the income from Stamp Duty by £10.5million.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the amendment with 7 votes for, 36 votes against, and 1 abstention.
Skip to 31 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 - twenty-eighth amendment
Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to the Government Plan asking that Stamp Duty in 2025 is reduced by £2million to reflect the removal of the current higher rate surcharge on the sale of second homes for one year, in order to promote a positive increase in the sale of residential properties.
The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to the amendment which would see the higher rate surcharge reduced to 2% instead of the Deputy’s request of 3%, therefore reducing the income to £665,000 rather than £2million.
The States Assembly voted to ACCEPT the Council of Ministers’ amendment to the amendment with 30 votes for, 14 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT Deputy Ozouf’s amendment, as amended, with 23 votes for, 24 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 2 hours and 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the beginning of the debate and from the start of this afternoon’s recording for the conclusion.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – twenty-fourth amendment
Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to restrict the provision of Agricultural Loans from being used for the purposes related to the cultivation of cannabis.
Deputy Hiliary Jeune lodged an amendment to the amendment which would clarify that Agricultural Loans are not to be used for the cultivation of cannabis that will be used in cannabis-based products for medical use.
The States Assembly voted to ACCEPT Deputy Jeune’s amendment with 27 votes for, 18 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
The Council of Ministers lodged a second amendment to the amendment which would reduce the amount available through Agricultural Loans for the cultivation of cannabis; ensuring the loans represent no more than 10% of the total funding allocated to the Fund, and that no individual loan is greater than £250,000.
However, the Deputy Bailiff ruled that following the States Assembly’s adoption of the first amendment to Amendment 24, the second amendment from the Council of Ministers should fall away
The States Assembly voted to REJECT Deputy Ozouf’s amendment, as amended with 18 votes for, 25 votes against, and 3 abstentions.
Skip to 37 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
Wednesday 27 November
Public Business
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 - twentieth amendment
The Economic and International Affairs Scrutiny Panel lodged an amendment to the Government Budget seeking to lessen the proposed cut to Jersey Business and Digital Jersey’s funding by £286,000 each year, by transferring it from the Central Reserve.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Panel’s amendment with 18 votes for, 27 votes against, and no abstentions.
Skip to 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – first amendment
Sir Philip Bailhache lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to increase the grant to the Social Security Fund which secures pensions, by £10million, which is back to its full formula value; and to decrease the grant to the Consolidated Fund by £10million.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Deputy’s amendment with 21 votes for, 25 votes against, and no abstentions.
Skip to 2 hours and 27 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the beginning of the debate and from 9 minutes into this afternoon’s recording for the conclusion.
Adjournment
The States Assembly then adjourned and will reconvene at 9:30am on Thursday 28 November, when they will continue to debate the proposed Government Budget 2025-2028.
If you would like to see the running order of the Government Budget debate - the order in which the Amendments will be taken - you can view it on our website.
Please note, the States Assembly has agreed to sit until 8:30pm on Thursday 28 November.
Thursday 28 November
Urgent Oral Question
Deputy Montfort Tadier asked the Sustainable Economic Development Minister, Deputy Kirsten Morel, the following question: 'Will the Minister advise whether there have been any discussions concerning Condor’s decision to remove the Clipper service in the weeks preceding Christmas, whether the vessel is being used on an alternative route during this period and if these changes are linked in any way to the delays in awarding the tender for future ferry services?'
Skip to 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the question and answer in full.
Public Business
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – seventeenth amendment
Deputy Karen Wilson lodged an amendment to the Government Budget which seeks to increase the Head of Expenditure to ‘Le Squez’ by £2.5million and to decrease the Head of Expenditure for ‘Infrastructure Rolling Vote and Public Realm’ by the same amount.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Deputy’s amendment with 15 votes for, 31 votes against, and no abstentions.
Skip to 17 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – nineteenth amendment
The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to transparently identify funding provided by Government to its chosen development partner for the programme of works on Fort Regent; and to identify a sustainable funding model.
The Council of Ministers said during the debate it would accept the amendment.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Panel’s amendment with 44 votes for, no votes against, and no abstentions.
Skip to 2 hours and 58 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – twenty-second amendment
Deputy Alex Curtis lodged an amendment to the Government Budget seeking to ensure the Digital Services Platform shall be built and designed following open design principals. The Deputy removed the elements that related to funding.
The Council of Ministers said during the debate it would accept the amendment.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Deputy’s amendment with 44 votes for, no votes against, and no abstentions.
Skip to 3 hours and 5 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – sixth amendment
The Hospital Review Panel lodged an amendment to the Government Budget asking Ministers to provide a breakdown of expenditure for the new Healthcare Facilities, showing separate budgets for the Overdale Acute Facility, Kensington Place Ambulatory Facility, and St. Saviour’s Health Village.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Panel's amendment with 17 votes for, 28 votes against, and 1 abstention.
Watch from the beginning of this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – sixteenth amendment
Deputy Philip Ozouf proposed an amendment to the Government Budget which opposed the proposed acquisition of the new Government Headquarters using the Social Security (Reserve) Fund; and to delay the acquisition.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Deputy’s amendment with 7 votes for, 38 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 1 hour and 8 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – twelfth amendment
Deputy Hiliary Jeune lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that would see sustainable wellbeing embedded within all business-as-usual activities in conjunction with Ministerial plans and portfolios, including how funding to third parties actively contributes to wellbeing, is aligned with the Future Jersey vision and is monitored in line with the Jersey Performance Framework.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Deputy’s amendment with 14 votes for, 31 votes against, and 1 abstention.
Skip to 1 hour and 45 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – eighth amendment
Deputy Helen Miles lodged an amendment to the Government Budget asking the Government to commit to the reinstatement of the indexation of alcohol duty in line with RPI from 2026. Alcohol duty has been frozen for the past five years due to the economic climate.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Deputy’s amendment with 14 votes for, 31 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 2 hours and 45 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – twenty-ninth amendment
The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to its own Budget to reduce the production ceiling for distillers eligible for duty relief, from 40,000 litres a year to 20,000 litres, in order to focus on genuinely small producers.
This amendment was accepted by the Council of Ministers, but it was still debated.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Council of Ministers’ amendment with 34 votes for, 8 votes against, and 2 abstentions.
Skip to 34 minutes into this evening’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – ninth amendment
Deputy Hilary Jeune lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that the £15m annual revenue projected to be received as a result of the new Pillar Two Corporate tax changes, should be focused on funding the delivery of a Sustainable Finance Action Plan and supporting the transition to a net-zero economy.
The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to the amendment to take out the words ‘funding for’ leaving it to read ‘focused on’ but not ‘funding the’ Sustainable Action Plan and supporting the transition to a net-zero economy.
The Council of Minister lodged a second amendment to the amendment to clarify that the work identified is suitably linked to the actions specified within the Sustainable Finance Action Plan.
Deputy Hilary Jeune accepted the Council of Ministers amendment and their amendment to the amendment.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE Deputy Jeune’s amendment, as amended by the Council of Ministers, with 44 votes for, 0 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 45 minutes into this evening’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – third amendment
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – amendment to the third amendment
The Corporate Services Panel lodged an amendment to the Government Budget, that Statistics Jersey Funding should be increased by £157,000 through the reallocation of other Cabinet Office expenditure.
The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to the Corporate Services Panel amendment, which would reduce the increase in funding to Statistics Jersey to £78,000.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Council of Ministers’ amendment with 22 votes for, 21 votes against, and 1 abstention.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel’s amendment, as amended by the Council of Ministers, with 42 votes for, 0 votes against, and 1 abstention.
Skip to 55 minutes into this evening’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – twenty-first amendment
Deputy Alex Curtis lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that reduces the project total for the Customer and Local Services programme TRANSFORM by £10million over the next three years to ensure value for money and increase the Social Security Fund.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the Deputy’s amendment with 12 votes for, 29 votes against, and 1 abstention.
Skip to 2 hours and 8 minutes into this evening’s recording to watch the debate in full.
Adjournment
The States Assembly then adjourned and will reconvene tomorrow, Friday 29 November, at 9:30am, when they will continue to debate the proposed Government Budget 2025-2028.
If you would like to see the running order of the Government Budget debate - the order in which the Amendments will be taken - view it here.
Thursday 29 November
Public Business
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028 – second amendment
Deputy Helen Miles lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to allocate £100,000 from within the Public Realm budget to prioritise work on the West of Island Planning Framework, as referenced in the Bridging Island Plan.
The Council of Ministers said it would accept the amendment.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the amendment with 40 votes for, no votes against, and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.51 Proposed Budget (Government Plan) 2025-2028
The States Assembly were then asked to vote on the Government Budget, as amended.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition, as amended, with 31 votes for, 13 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
Skip to 1 hour and 27 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch beginning of the debate and from the beginning of this afternoon’s recording to watch the conclusion.
P.72 Draft Finance (2025 Budget) (Jersey) Law 202-
The Minister for Treasury and Resources, Deputy Elaine Millar, proposed the Draft Finance (2025 Budget) (Jersey) Law 202- which would amend existing tax legislation to implement the revenue measures, and the administrative and technical tax amendments, proposed in the Budget 2025-2028.
It would also allow the Minister to appoint a Chair, and one or more Deputy Chairs, of the Commissioners of Appeal for a term of 3 years which can be renewed twice; and increase the number of Commissioners on the bench from 12 to 14.
P.72 Draft Finance (2025 Budget) (Jersey) Law 202-. - amendment
The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel lodged an amendment to the Draft Finance (2025 Budget) Law to increase the income generated by Vehicle Emissions Duty (VED) for transfer to the Climate Emergency Fund.
P.72 Draft Finance (2025 Budget) (Jersey) Law 202- second amendment
The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to the Draft Finance (2025 Budget) Law which would extend the relief for small distillers. It proposes a unified 50% rate for all eligible small distillers who are distilling either raw agriculture products or purchased spirits. It also proposes reducing the production ceiling from 40,000 litres a year to 20,000 litres.
P.72 Draft Finance (2025 Budget) (Jersey) Law 202- third amendment
The Minister for Treasury and Resources, Deputy Elaine Millar, proposed an amendment to the Draft Finance (2025 Budget) (Jersey) Law 202- which would allow the Minister to introduce new arrangements for Commissioners of Appeal by Ministerial Order.
The Minister for Treasury and Resources accepted the Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel’s amendment and her own third amendment, however the Assembly debated the Council of Ministers second amendment to the Draft Finance (2025 Budget) Law.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE Part 1 of the Council of Ministers amendment, with 34 votes for, 6 votes against, and 0 abstentions.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE Part 2 of the Council of Ministers amendment, with 39 votes for, 1 vote against, and 0 abstentions.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the law in third reading, as amended by the Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel, the Council of Ministers, and the Minister, with 34 votes for, 1 vote against, and 7 abstentions.
Skip to 1 hour and 45 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
The Minister for Social Security, Deputy Lyndsay Feltham, proposed to amend Article 9 of the Social Security (Jersey) Law 1974 to adjust the formula used to calculate the value of the States Grant from the Consolidated Fund into the Social Security Fund, reducing it by £10million in 2025 and £10million in 2026. The payment in 2027 would be based on the full formula.
The States Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition in third reading in a standing vote.
Skip to 3 hours into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
Adjournment
The States Assembly then adjourned and will reconvene at the next States Meeting, beginning Tuesday 10 December at 9:30am.
