States Minutes 4th February 1992

STATES MINUTES 4 t h F e b r uary 1992

T HE STATES assembled on Tuesday,  4th February 1992 at 9.30 a.m. under

 the Presidency of the Deputy Bailiff ,

V  er non Amy Tomes, Esquire.

_ _ _ _ _ _ ______

All Members were present with the exception of -

 L eonard René Hamel, Connétable of St.

C lement - absent.

L eonard Norman, Deputy of St. Clement - out

o f the Island.

M aurice Clement Buesnel, Deputy of St.

H elier - ill.

D erek Ryder Maltwood, Deputy of St. Mary -

o ut of the Island.

G raeme Ernest Rabet, Deputy of St. Helier -

 i ll.

M argaret Anne Le Geyt, Deputy of St.

S aviour - out of the Island.

_ _ _ _ _ _ ______

P r a y e rs

_ _ _ _ _ _ ______

Subordinate legislation tabled

The following enactments were laid before the States, namely -

 1 .  Road Traffic (Saint Peter)

( J er sey) Order 1992. R & O 8331.

 2 .  Road Traffic (Saint Brelade)

( A m endment) (Jersey) Order 1992. R & O 8 3 3 2.

Establishment Committee - appointment and resignation of members

THE STATES noted the resignation of Senator Corrie Stein and Deputy Frank Harris on Walker of St. Helier , and appointed Deputy Shirley

Margaret Baudains of St. Helier and Deputy Michael Adam Wavell of St. Saviour as members of the Establishment Committee.

Tourism Committee - appointment of members

THE STATES appointed Senator Corrie Stein and Edwin Le Gresley Godel, Connétable of St. Mary as members of the Tourism Committee.

Statement of births, marriages and deaths in 1991. R.C.3

The Etat Civil Committee by Act dated 21st January 1992 presented to the States a Statement of the number of births, marriages and deaths registered during the year 1991.

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

Administrative Decisions (Review) (Jersey) Law 1982: report for the period 1st February 1988 to 31st December 1991. R.C.4.

The Special Committee to consider the relationship between Committees and the States by Act dated 29th January 1992 presented to the States a report of the Panel of Members regarding complaints received between 1st February 1988 and 31st December 1991.

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

Matters noted - financial transactions

THE STATES noted an Act of the Finance and Economics Committee dated 27th January 1992, showing that in pursuance of Rule 5 of the Public Finances (General) (Jersey) Rules 1967, as amended, the Committee had noted that -

 ( a) the Education Committee had accepted t h e lowest of four tenders, namely that

s u b mitted by Charles Le Quesne (1956) L i m ited in the sum of £620,234 in a

c o n tract period of 38 weeks for the

c o n struction of a new nursery unit and i n fa nts block at St. Saviour's School, S t . Saviour;

 ( b) the Public Health Committee had

a c c epted the lowest of six tenders,

n a m ely that submitted by Charles Le

Q u esne (1956) Limited, in the revised s u m of £2,180,484 for the construction

o f a new Central Laundry at Five Oaks,

S t . Saviour;

( c) the Public Health Committee had

a c cepted the lowest of four tenders,

n a m ely that submitted by Hacquoil and

C o o k Limited, in the sum of £169,258

f o r the replacement of the existing

s w i mming pool roof and extension to the c h a nging rooms at St. Saviour's

H  o spital, St. Saviour ;

 ( d) the Housing Committee had accepted the l o w est of five tenders, namely that

s u b mitted by J.F. Marett and Son

L i m ited, in the sum of £812,500 in a

c o n tract period of 47 weeks for the

c o n struction of eight two-bedroom flats

a n d two three-bedroom maisonettes on

t h e Quatre Bras Hotel site at

S p r ingfield Road, St. Helier.

Matters lodged

The following subjects were lodged au Greffe'' -

 1 .  Draft Social Security (Amendment

N  o . 9) (Jersey) Law 1992 (Appointed D  ay ) Act 199 . P.7/92.

P r e sented by the Social Security

C o m mittee.

 2 .  Draft Road Traffic (No. 41)

( J er sey) Regulations 199 . P.8/92. P r e sented by the Defence

C o m mittee.

 3 .  Draft Motor Traffic (No. )

( J er sey) Regulations 199 . P.9/92. P r e sented by the Defence

C o m mittee.

 4 .  Draft Policing of Roads

( A m endment No. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 1 9 9 . P.10/92.

P r e sented by the Defence

C o m mittee.

 5 .  Territorial Army Personnel:

p u r chase of properties. P.11/92. P r e sented by the Defence

C o m mittee.

Draft Policing of Roads (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 199 . P.157/91. Withdrawn

THE STATES noted that the President of the Defence Committee had withdrawn the draft Policing of Roads (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 199  (lodged on 22nd October 1991) having lodged revised draft Regulations (P.10/92) at the present Sitting.

Golf Course, Les Creux, St. Brelade. P.101/91 Golf Course, Les Creux, St. Brelade: purchase and lease of land. P.187/91

THE STATES acceded to the request of the President of the Sport, Leisure and Recreation Committee that consideration of the propositions regarding a golf course at Les Creux, St. Brelade, be deferred from the present Sitting to a later date.

Draft Agricultural Land (Control of Sales and Leases) (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Law 199 . P.2/92

Projet de Loi (199 ) (Amendment) sur la Location de Bien-Fonds. P.3/92

THE STATES acceded to the request of the President of the Agriculture and Fisheries Committee that consideration of the draft Agricultural Land (Control of Sales and Leases) (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Law 199  (lodged on 21st January 1992) and Projet de Loi (199 ) (Amendement) sur la location de Bien-Fonds (lodged on 21st January 1992) be deferred from the present Sitting to a later date.

Arrangement of Public Business for the next Sitting on 18th February 1992

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

next Sitting on 18th February 1992 -

D raft Social Security (Amendment No. 9)

( Jersey) Law 1992 (Appointed Day) Act 199 . P .7/92.

S ocial Security Committee.

D raft Road Traffic (No. 41) (Jersey) R egulations 199  P.8/92.

D efence Committee.

D raft Motor Traffic (No. ) (Jersey) R egulations 199 . P.9/92.

D efence Committee.

D raft Policing of Roads (Amendment

N o. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 199 . P.10/92. D efence Committee.

T erritorial Army Personnel: purchase

o f properties. P.11/92.

D efence Committee.

La Caroline, La Grande Rue, St. Mary. Question and answer (Tape No. 123)

Senator John Stephen Rothwell asked the Connétable of St. John, President of the Island Development Committee, the following question -

  Will the President inform the House

 w hat decision has been made in regard to La  C aroline, La Grande Rue, St. Mary, which

 w as the subject of a special enquiry

 c haired by Sir Martin Le Quesne, whose

 r eport was presented to the House on 18th

 J une 1991?''

The President of the Island Development Committee replied as follows -

  The Senator will be aware that, following  p resentation of the Special Committee's

 r eport on 18th June 1991, my Committee

 s ubmitted a formal written response, which  w as circulated to all States Members on 4th  J uly 1991. In a letter accompanying that

 r esponse, I notified Members that, insofar

 a s site acquisition is concerned, a Royal

 C ourt appeal was pending against the

 i mposition of a personal use' condition

 a ttached to the existing permit. The

o utcome of such an appeal would obviously

 a ffect the value of the site.

T he Royal Court appeal was subsequently h eld in abeyance following an enquiry by t he owner's advocates (August 1991)

r egarding possible alternative uses for the s ite. One question put forward on behalf of t he owners was whether permission would be a llowed for demolition of all existing

b uildings on the site, to include the

e xisting bungalow, and the development of

o ne large replacement dwelling (hence

e xtinguishing the existing use). At its

m eeting on 22nd August 1991 my Committee a greed to support this proposal, subject of

c ourse to detailed consideration of a

f ormal application, which would need to go

t hrough the normal advertisement and

c onsultation procedures. A formal

a pplication was awaited.

A t the end of November the owner notified t he Department that, having further

e xamined the matter, the redevelopment of t he site for one large dwelling was not a

v iable proposition for him, and that he

w ould not be proceeding with such an

a pplication. The owner wishes to sell the

s ite, but is presently fettered in selling

o n to another haulage company by virtue of t he personal' condition, and the site

c annot be used for any other purpose

w ithout the consent of the Island

D evelopment Committee.

O n 3rd December 1991 an application was s ubmitted on behalf of Paul Haslam Limited f or use of the premises as a joinery

w orkshop. This application was rejected by m y Committee on 23rd January 1992.

I n the light of recent developments, my

C ommittee is further assessing the

a lternative options for this site and the

R oyal Court appeal regarding the personal c ondition is again pending.''

Long Beach, La Rue à Don, Grouville . Question and answer (Tape No. 123)

Senator John Stephen Rothwell asked the Connétable of St. John, President of the Island Development Committee, the following question -

  Will the President inform the House what

 a ction the Island Development Committee has  t aken following the States decision on 21st

 J anuary 1992 when they requested the

C ommittee -

 ( a) to reconsider the recent application to demolish existing buildings,

c o n struct 12 two-bedroom flats and two

o n e -bedroom flats with parking for 31 c a rs ' at Long Beach, La Rue à Don,

G r o uville;

 ( b) specifically to limit the height of the

d e v elopment to two storeys and maintain t h e sea view across the site; and

 ( c) to report thereon to the States as soon a s p ossible?''

The President of the Island Development Committee replied as follows -

  Following the States decision on 21st

 J anuary concerning the development at

 L ong Beach, Grouville , my Department has  g iven the matter the highest priority over

 a ll other important commitments.

A model of the site and the surrounding

a rea has been commissioned and this will be a vailable for Members of the House to view b efore the debate resumes.

A ll of the opinions expressed in the debate a re being carefully re-examined and will be f ully addressed in my Committee's report to t he House.

A comprehensive list of questions on the c omplex legal issues of possible costs and c ompensation have also been put to the

A ttorney General and we must await his

r eply which will be included in our report. I t is, however, already clear that my

C ommittee has no legal power short of

r evocation, to insist that the owner ceases w ork.

W e have, however, requested that he does

s o, and we are advised that he is carrying

o ut the minimum amount of work required to m eet his contractual commitments.

I will ensure that the States are provided w ith comprehensive information on all the a spects, before the debate resumes and I w ill do my best to bring this before the

H ouse on 18th February.''

Jersey's architectural heritage. Statement

The Vice-President of the Island Development Committee made a statement in the following

terms -

  Members will recall that in the Island

 P lan, Policy BE5 states that the Island

 D evelopment Committee will designate and  p ublish a list of Sites of Special

 I nterest, covering buildings and features

o f architectural and historic importance'.

T he Island Plan anticipated that the

c omplete listing process would take some

t ime, and so it has. In the intervening

p eriod the Department has operated and will c ontinue to operate within the Planning Law t o ensure that there is adequate protection

f or the buildings included in its Register

o f Buildings of Architectural and Historic

I mportance, the publication of which the

C ommittee has approved.

T he listing process, by a panel of local

e xperts commissioned by the Island

D evelopment Committee, has involved a

c omplete survey of the Island's buildings

w hich are considered to contribute to its

w ealth of architectural heritage. The very

b est buildings have been identified as so

i mportant that formal S.S.I. designation is

r equired, and the remainder of the valuable b uildings were classified as being worthy

o f other various levels of protection. The

o wners of those buildings which will be

f ormally registered as S.S.I.'s have

a lready been properly informed, as required b y the Law and their comments taken into a ccount.

 I am therefore pleased to be able to tell

 t he House that we are now in a position to

 t able these Orders before the States on a

 P arish-by-Parish basis, once legal work in

 r espect of each Parish has been concluded

 a nd that the first of the Orders will be

 p laced before the States very soon. Members  s hould expect that this Parish-by-Parish

 p rocess will take approximately one year.

 I n the meantime Members will have received  t he Island Development Committee's report,   The Protection of Jersey's Heritage'

 t ogether with a list of the 500 or so

 p roposed final Sites of Special Interest.

T here is, of course, still room for

a mendment and where, for example, the C ommittee is made aware of threats to a p rotected building it will be prepared to

  spot-list' such a building to prevent  d emolition or deliberate neglect.

T hose buildings which have not been

i dentified as suitable for S.S.I.'s at

p resent, but which are identified in

p ublications listed in the Island Plan, or a re Building Frontages of Townscape

I mportance, will continue to be subject to s trict planning control measures, as set

o ut in the Island Plan.

 T he final point I wish to make concerns the  s tatement in the Island Plan that, subject

 t o States' approval, some financial

 p rovision will be made to help those owners  w ho face abnormal costs and difficulty in

m aintaining and repairing their buildings.

 T he States' adherence to the European

 C onvention for Protection of the

 A rchitectural Heritage entails a further

 c ommitment to provide financial support

  for maintaining and restoring the

 a rchitectural heritage'.

N ow is not the time to bring forward

f unding proposals, but if the States is to

f ollow through its public commitment to the P lan and the European Convention, then we s hall have to bring forward those proposals a t some time.

A s Chairman of the Jersey Building Heritage S ub-Committee, that was set up to give

p articular attention to our outstanding

a rchitectural heritage, I feel it is

i mperative that all Members of the House

s hould have the opportunity to read and

c onsider this report. I am now formally

p resenting it to you.

I hope you will read it carefully and feel

a ble to lend your support to the Island

D evelopment Committee in its policies for t he protection of Jersey's heritage.''

Companies (Purchase of Own Shares) (Jersey) Regulations 1992. P.4/92

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 59 of the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991 made Regulations entitled the Companies (Purchase of Own Shares) (Jersey) Regulations 1992.

Companies (Transitional Provisions) (Jersey) Regulations 1992. P.5/92

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 221 of the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991, made Regulations entitled the Companies (Transitional Provisions) (Jersey) Regulations 1992.

Companies (Amendment) (Jersey) Law 1992. P.6/92

THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a Law entitled the Companies (Amendment) (Jersey) Law 1992.

THE STATES rose at 10.35 p.m.

  R . S . G  R A Y   G  re f fi e r o f the States.