States Minutes 26th May 1992

STATES MINUTES 26t h M ay 199 2 P ri c e : £ 1.00

T HE STATES assembled on Tuesday, 26t h May 1992 at 9.30 a.m. under

t he Presidency of the Bailiff ,

S i r P eter Crill, C.B.E.

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All Members were present with the exception of -

S nowdon George Robins, Connétable of St. S aviour - ill.

M alcolm Pollard, Connétable of St. Peter - i ll.

M ichael Adam Wavell, Deputy of St.

S aviour - ill.

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P r aye rs

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Deputy R.W. Blampied of St. Helier - welcome

The Bailiff , on behalf of the States, welcomed Deputy Ronald Winter Blampied of St. Helier on his return to the States after his recent

illness.

Subordinate legislation tabled

The following enactments were laid before the States, namely -

1 . Companies (General Provisions)

( A m endment) (Jersey) Order 1992. R & O 8390.

2 . Public Rank Taxis (Fares and

C har ges) (Jersey) Order 1992. R & O 8391.

Special Committee on Sex Discrimination: appointment of member

THE STATES appointed Deputy Robin Ernest Richard Rumboll of St. Helier as a member of the Special

Committee on Sex Discrimination. Ecology Fund: report for 1991. R.C. 18

The Island Development Committee by Act dated 16th April 1992 presented to the States the annual report of the Ecology Fund for 1991.

THE STATES ordered that the said report be printed and distributed.

Oakfield Industries Limited: report and accounts for 1991. R.C. 19

The Social Security Committee by Act dated 6th May 1992 presented to the States the report and accounts of Oakfield Industries Limited for the period to 31st December 1991.

THE STATES ordered that the said report and accounts be printed and distributed.

Industrial Relations Advisory Service: report for 1991. R.C. 20

The Industrial Relations Committee by Act dated 27th March 1992 presented to the States the report of the Industrial Relations Advisory Service for 1991.

THE STATES ordered that the said report be printed and distributed.

Probation Service: report for 1991

The Prison Board by Act dated 6th May 1991 presented to the States a report of the Probation Service for 1991.

THE STATES ordered that the said report be printed and distributed.

States of Jersey Police Force: report for 1991

The Defence Committee by Act dated 21st May 1991 presented to the States a report on the States

of Jersey Police Force for the year 1991.

THE STATES ordered that the said report be printed and distributed.

Matters noted - land transactions

THE STATES noted an Act of the Finance and Economics Committee dated 18th May 1992, showing that in pursuance of Standing Orders relating to certain transactions in land, the Committee had approved -

( a) as recommended by the Housing

C om mittee, the granting to the Parish of S t. Lawrence of a wayleave at St.

L aw rence Arsenal, in order to make

s er vi ce connexions, for the sum of £10 w i t h the Parish paying all legal costs

i nv olved;

( b) as recommended by the Housing

C om mittee, the granting to the Parish of S t. Lawrence of a vehicular right of w a y ac ross land at St. Lawrence

A r s enal, for the sum of £10, with the P ar ish paying all legal costs involved;

( c) as recommended by the Education

C om mittee, the lease from Mr.

C hr istopher Julian Tudor Davey of the

t hr ee -bedroomed property La Robinette, S t . A ubin's High Street, St. Brelade

f or a pe riod of twenty months

com mencing 1st December 1991 at an

annua l rent of £8,985.24 plus an

i nc r ease on 1st December 1992 based on t he J ersey Cost of Living Index;

( d) as recommended by the Education

C om mittee, the lease of St. James'

S chool , Le Breton Lane, St. Helier from t he T rustees of St. James' Church, for

a pe riod of eight months from 21st

N o vem ber 1991 at a rent of £10,000;

( e) as recommended by the Public Services C ommittee, the renewal of the lease to

M afoie Jersey Limited of an area of land

m easuring approximately five metres by four m etres, adjacent to the slipway at West

P ark, St. Helier , from 1st April 1992, for

a period of three years at an annual rent

o f £215, subject to annual rent reviews

b ased on the Jersey Cost of Living Index;

( f) as recommended by the Housing Committee and i n order to facilitate the proposed

deve lopment at Field 1367, St. Helier ,

w i t h the public being responsible for

al l l egal fees involved in the

t rans actions -

( i) the cession by Mr. Stuart Edgar M our a nt of an area of land

m eas ur ing approximately 47 square m et res immediately to the north of F iel d 1367;

( ii ) t  he purchase from Mr. Stuart Edgar M our a nt of a strip of land to the

ea s t of Field 1367 measuring

ap pr oxi mately 144.42 square metres for t he no minal sum of £10, with

the pub lic being responsible for

the er ec tion of a 6' wall on the

ne w b oundary;

( ii i) t he sale to Mr. Stuart Edgar

M our ant of a small area of

land i n t he s outhern boundary

o f F iel d 1371 f or the nominal

sum of £ 10, in order to form an ac ces s to the property

H om e le a' ;

( iv ) the granting by the public to Mr. S tuar t E dgar Mourant of the right to put a 6" pipe under the new

road, r eplacing the existing right for a 4" pipe;

( v ) Mr. Ronald Herbert Mourant to be a pa r t y t o the transaction to give

up h i s right of access through the

pr oper ty Homelea' in exchange for

a r ig ht of way over the new access

to be c reated.

Matters lodged

The following subjects were lodged au Greffe'' -

1 . Projet de Loi (199 ) (Amendement

N o . 2 ) sur les teneures en fidéicommis et l 'incorporation d'associations.

P .73/ 92.

P r es ented by the Legislation

C om mittee.

2 . Draft Separation and Maintenance

O r der s (Maintenance Payments)

( A m endment No. 2) (Jersey) Regulations 199 . P .74/92.

P r es ented by the Legislation

C om mittee.

3 . Golf course, Les Creux, St.

B r el ade: purchase and lease of l and. P .75/92.

P r es ented by the Sport, Leisure and R ecreation Committee.

4 . Health Service development

pol icies 1993-97. P.76/92.

P r es ented by the Public Health C om mittee.

5 . Advocates (Jersey) Law 1968, as

am ende d - University of Caen: request t o L egislation Committee (P.62/92) -

am endm ent. P.77/92.

P r es ented by the Legislation

C om mittee.

The following subjects were lodged on 19th May 1992 -

1 . Strategic Policy report for 1992. P .70/92.

P r es ented by the Policy

and R esources Committee.

2. St. Thomas' Roman Catholic

C hur ch: loan. P.71/92.

P r es ented by Senator Richard J os eph Shenton.

3 . Protection of employment oppor tunities. P.72/92.

P r es ented by the Policy and R es ources Committee.

Golf Course, Les Creux, St. Brelade : purchase and lease of land. P.187/91. Withdrawn

THE STATES noted that the President of the Sport, Leisure and Recreation Committee had withdrawn the proposition relating to the purchase and lease of land for a golf course at Les Creux, St. Brelade (lodged on 3rd December 1991), the Committee having lodged a revised proposition at the present Sitting (P.75/92).

Arrangement of Public Business for the next Sitting on 9th June 1992

THE STATES confirmed that the following subjects lodged au Greffe should be considered at the

next Sitting on 9th June 1992 -

J ersey Gas Company Limited: purchase. P .69/92.

L odged: 12th May 1992.

P olicy and Resources Committee.

P rojet de Loi (199 ) (Amendement) sur l a location de biens-fonds. P.3/92.

L odged: 21st January 1992.

A griculture and Fisheries Committee.

D raft Agricultural Land (Control of

S ales and Leases) (Amendment No. 3) ( Jersey) Law 199 . P.64/92.

L odged: 12th May 1992.

A griculture and Fisheries Committee.

S t. Thomas' Roman Catholic Church: l oan. P.71/92.

L odged: 19th May 1992.

S enator R.J. Shenton.

P rojet de Loi (199 ) (Amendement

N o. 2) sur les teneures en fidéicommis et l 'incorporation d'associations. P.73/92. L odged: 26th May 1992.

L egislation Committee.

D raft Separation and Maintenance

O rders (Maintenance Payments) (Amendment N o. 2) (Jersey) Regulations 199 . P.74/92.

L odged: 26th May 1992.

L egislation Committee.

G olf Course, Les Creux, St. Brelade : p urchase and lease of land. P.75/92. L odged: 26th May 1992.

S port, Leisure and Recreation

C ommittee.

G olf Course, Le Creux, St. Brelade : P .101/91.

L odged: 18th June 1991.

F inance and Economics

C ommittee.

Delegation which attended Home Office regarding Deputy Bailiff : Personal statement

Senator Richard Joseph Shenton made a personal statement in the following terms -

Following the announcement on Tuesday

1 2th May of the decision of Her Majesty The Q ueen - taken on the advice of the Home

S ecretary - that Mr. Vernon Tomes should

c ease to be Deputy Bailiff after 30th June

t his year, I immediately convened a private

m eeting of States' Members to be held the

f ollowing morning. Mr. Tomes addressed that m eeting and I then proposed that the

S tates' Members who had formed the

d elegation which had visited the Home

O ffice on 2nd April would meet to discuss

t he matter further. This course of action

w as agreed by all the Members present at

t hat meeting.

T he delegation met on 19th May and the

M embers agreed that they, as a group, could t ake no further action with regard to the

p osition of Mr. Tomes as Deputy Bailiff .

T hey then considered three matters -

1 . The process of consultation by the B ai liff.

2 . The representations made by the del egat ion to the Home Office.

3 . The present arrangements whereby the H e ad of the Judiciary is also the

S peak er of the States.

T he Bailiff , in his Statement to the States

o n 12th May, said -

By February 1990 Mr. Tomes had still not r ecovered his backlog in spite of having

b een relieved of the majority of his court

w ork for the previous 15 months. As it

b ecame clear that whatever measures I took h ad little effect I recommended to the then

L ieutenant Governor that Mr. Tomes be

i nvited to take early retirement. But

b efore doing so I consulted people -

i ncluding members of the judiciary, the

l egal profession and four senior Members of t his House. All agreed that I had no option

b ut to make the recommendation I did.'

A s you are aware three of the Members of

t he States who were consulted' were

m embers of the delegation which went to the H ome Office. However, the process of

c onsultation - in 1990 - was such that

M embers were seen individually by the

B ailiff and informed of his proposed course

o f action.

I n fairness to those members, it should be

m ade plain that they were advised, in early

1 990, that the Home Office was to be

i nformed of the situation, through the

m edium of the Lieutenant Governor, and that t he Deputy Bailiff would be asked to take

e arly retirement, which he had earlier

a greed to consider.

T hey were not advised of, nor consulted

a bout, nor asked to approve of, any

s ubsequent request to the Deputy Bailiff to r esign his office or be dismissed.

T he delegation finds that the present

p rocess of consultation is unsatisfactory b ecause the Bailiff does not have an established body with which to consult. He, t herefore, has little option but to consult

i ndividual Members on an ad hoc basis. The d elegation believes that a more formal

p rocess should be established which would b e of benefit both to the Bailiff and the

H ouse. It therefore proposes that a

C onsultative Panel of elected Members of

t he States should be created with whom the B ailiff would consult on various matters,

i ncluding the appointment of Crown

O fficers. The Panel would be available at

a ll times to provide help and assistance to

t he Bailiff , and would include the senior

S enator, the senior Connétable and the

s enior Deputy , together with Presidents of c ertain Committees. The States will be

a sked to approve the constitution of the

P anel and it is further proposed that the

B ailiff would then meet with at least a

q uorum of the Members as the occasion

a rises. Likewise, the Panel could invite

t he Bailiff to discuss matters on which it

m ight have concern. I shall bring the

r elevant proposition to the States at the

n ext Sitting.

T he delegation has to report its

d eep disappointment both in the fact that

i ts mission to the Home Office failed to

a chieve its object, and also about the

m anner in which the matter was dealt with.

I n particular the delegation has to take

i ssue with that part of the Home Office

S tatement included in the Bailiff 's

S tatement to States' Members which stated -

T he principal points advanced by the del egat ion on 2nd April were that the

j ud icial duties of the Deputy Bailiff

w e r e too onerous and that he should be r el i eved of his duties so as to catch

up w ith outstanding cases.'

I n fact, the delegation made it plain

t hroughout the meeting that its Members

w ere not there to argue any case whatsoever r elated to judicial matters, but to point

o ut the damaging consequences to the

r elationship between the Home Office and

t he people and government of the Island if

t he Deputy Bailiff , who is not solely a

J udge but also Deputy Speaker' of the

S tates Assembly and Deputy to the Civic

H ead of Jersey, were to be dismissed

w ithout the democratically elected Island

g overnment having had the time and the

o pportunity to discuss the matter and make r ecommendations.

T he delegation felt after the meeting that i t had made a strong case - sadly its

a dvice was ignored, with the inevitable d amaging consequences.

M r. Clarke has offered to consider any

s pecific comments that the States of Jersey m ight like to make about the constitutional r esponsibilities involved, if the States

w ished, after careful consideration, to

m ake any proposal in the light of this

c ase.' The delegation does not, therefore, b elieve that any useful purpose would be s erved at this stage by requesting a

m eeting with Mr. Kenneth Clarke.

T he delegation agrees that any

s uch constitutional proposals should indeed b e carefully considered within the Island

b efore any further approach is made to the H ome Secretary or his Department in this

r egard.

T he last matter is the review of the

p resent arrangement whereby the Head of the J udiciary is also Speaker of the States.

T he delegation is aware of the fact that

t raditionally this has been a dual rôle for

t he Bailiff , and the Deputy Bailiff as his

d eputy. However, recent events have led

m embers to believe that this relationship

s hould be reviewed. It is believed that

m atters concerning this arrangement should b e examined by a properly constituted

C ommittee of the States. The Policy and

R esources Committee has responsibility for

t he Constitution and Senator Jeune , as

P resident of that Committee, has agreed to

t ake this on board and also that the review

w ill be undertaken as a matter of

p riority.''

Commercial Relations Department: change of name to Financial Services Department

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Finance and Economics Committee, and referring to their Act dated 9th February 1971 authorising the creation of the Commercial Relations Department, agreed to the change of name of that Department to Financial Services Department, with effect from 1st July 1992.

Scrap processing site, Bellozanne, St. Helier : lease

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Public

Services Committee -

( a) approved the lease to Picot and Rouille L i m ited of the scrap processing site at

B el lozanne, St. Helier for a period of

ni n e years, with effect from the 25th

D e cem ber 1991 at an annual rent of

£ 28,75 0, subject to rent review clauses

at t he end of the 3rd and 6th years of

t he l  ease;

( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the necessary agreement;

( c) authorised the Treasurer of the States t o r eceived the rent as it becomes due.

Victoria Chambers, Conway Street, St. Helier : transfer of administration

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Public Services Committee -

( a) approved the transfer of administration

f rom the Public Services Committee to

t he I sland Development Committee of the pr op erty Victoria Chambers, Esplanade,

S t . H elier;

( b) authorised the transfer of the capital

vot e C0370 - Victoria Chambers Repairs f rom the Public Services Committee to

t he I sland Development Committee.

Trilateral Agreement on Social Security between the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey: exchange of letters

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Social Security Committee -

( a) approved the draft Exchange of Letters am endi ng the Trilateral Agreement on

S oci al Security between the United

K i ngdo m and the Isle of Man, Guernsey and J ersey;

( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the appropriate letter on

beha lf of the Social Security

C om mittee.

Advocates (Jersey) Law 1968, as amended - University of Caen: report to Legislation Committee. P.62/92

THE STATES acceded to the request of Senator Richard Joseph Shenton that consideration of his proposition relating to the removal from qualifications for becoming an advocate of the Royal Court the requirement to obtain a

Certificat d'Etudes Juridiques Françaises et Normandes'' at the University of Caen, be

deferred as he had lodged an amendment presented by the Legislation Committee (P.77/92).

Change in Presidency

THE STATES re-assembled after lunch under the Presidency of Ronald Stanley Gray, Esq., Greffier of the States.

West of Albert Pier: construction of yacht marina. P.54/92 revised

THE STATES commenced consideration of a proposition of the Harbours and Airport Committee regarding the construction of a yacht marina west of Albert Pier and, having rejected

an amendment of Senator Nigel Quérée that after the words St. Helier Waterfront Plan - Master Plan'' there should be inserted the words

subject to an environmental audit'', adopted

the proposition and agreed to amend the sight- line determining the western boundary of the

area west of Albert Pier by establishing it 140 yards to the west when viewed from the Esplanade so as to enable the construction of a yacht

marina larger than envisaged in the St. Helier Waterfront Plan - Master Plan.

Members present voted on the amendment as follows -

 P our ' ' (18)

Senators

L e Maistre, Carter, Stein, Quérée.

Connétable s

S t. Lawrence, St. Mary , St. Ouen , St. B relade.

Deputies

S t. John, St. Peter , H. Baudains (C),

C outanche (H), St. Mary , Bailhache (H), S. B audains (H), Grouville , St. Martin , Syvret ( H).

C ont r e'' (26)

Senators

J eune, Binnington, Horsfall, Baal, R othwell, Le Main, Chinn.

Connétable s

S t. John, St. Clement , Trinity , St. Martin , G rouville.

Deputies

L e Gallais (S), Roche (S), Trinity , Norman ( C), Buesnel (H), Le Sueur (H), St. Ouen , H uelin (B), Jordan (B), Rabet (H), Clarke- H alifax (S), Le Fondré (L), Walker (H),

C respel (H).

Members present voted on the Harbours and Airport Committee's proposition as follows -

 P our ' ' (27)

Senators

J eune, Binnington, Horsfall, Baal, R othwell, Le Main, Chinn.

Connétable s

St. John , St. Helier , Trinity , St. Martin , G rouville.

Deputies

L e Gallais (S), Roche (S), Trinity , Rumboll

( H), Norman (C), Buesnel (H), Le Sueur (H), S t. Ouen, Huelin (B), Jordan (B), Rabet

( H), Clarke-Halifax (S), Le Fondré (L), Le

G eyt (S), Walker (H).

C ont r e'' (19)

Senators

L e Maistre, Carter, Stein, Quérée.

Connétable s

S t. Clement, St. Lawrence , St. Mary , St. O uen, St. Brelade .

Deputies

S t. John, St. Peter , H. Baudains (C),

Coutanche (L), Bailhache (H), S. Baudains ( H), Grouville , St. Martin , Syvret (H),

C respel (H).

Dennis Ryan Court, David Place, St. Helier : development. P.63/92

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Housing Committee -

( a) approved Drawings Nos. 1420:01/15E,

16E , 17C, 18B, 19B, 20B, 22C, 23B, 24B, 25B , 26C, 27C, 29, 101D, 102, 103 and

104, s howing the development of Dennis R yan C ourt with two one-bedroomed

f lat s, eight two-bedroomed flats and

f ive t wo-bedroomed houses for States'

r en tal accommodation;

( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the said Drawings on behalf of t he S tates;

( c) approved a fixed price contract with J .P . M auger Limited, for the

cons truction of the said dwellings, in t he s um of £1,446,293;

( d) authorised the Greffier of the States t o p ass the necessary contract;

( e) approved the payment of £135,406 in pr of essional fees for the development.

Green Zone sites: agricultural buildings. P.65/92

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Island Development Committee, expressed their support for the Island Development Committee's intention to grant planning permission for the

construction of two buildings required for agricultural purposes on sites in the Green

Zone, as follows -

( i) an agricultural storage building at The G a bl es, La Route de l'Etacq, St. Ouen ( D r awing No. 330/1 refers);

( ii) a f armhouse at La Falaise Farm, La G r a nde R ue, St. Mary (Drawing No. 329 /1 r efers).

Senator Jean Le Maistre, having declared an interest, withdrew from the Chamber during the debate on paragraph (i).

THE STATES then adjourned, having agreed that the outstanding item of Public Business should stand over until the next meeting.

THE STATES rose at 5.30 p.m.

C .M . N E W C O MB E D eput y Greffier of the States.