States Minutes 16th March 1993

STATES MINUTES 16t h Ma rc h 1993 P ri c e : £ 1.00

T HE STATES assembled on Tuesday, 1 6th March 1993 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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His Excellency the Lieutenant Governor, Air Marshal Sir John Sutton, K.C.B.,

w as pr e sent.

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All Members were present with the exception of -

J ohn Pepin Le Sueur , Connétable of St.

J ohn - out of the Island.

A rthur Philip Querée, Connétable of St.

O uen - out of the Island.

D erek Ryder Maltwood, Deputy of St. Mary -

o ut of the Island.

A lan Payn Bree, Deputy of Grouville - out

o f the Island.

J ohn Nicolle Le Fondré, Deputy of St.

L awrence - out of the Island.

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P r aye rs

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Subordinate legislation tabled

The following enactments were laid before the States, namely -

1 . Jersey Open Air Market (Jersey) O r der 1993. R & O 8525.

2 . Health Insurance

(P ha rmaceutical Benefit) (General

P rov isions) (Amendment) (Jersey) Order 1993. R & O 8526.

Agricultural loans: report for 1992. R.C.10/93 The Agriculture and Fisheries Committee, by Act

dated 4th March 1993, presented to the States

a report on the Agricultural Loans and

Guarantees Fund for the year ended 31st December 1992.

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

Traffic and transport policy. P.33/93

The Policy and Resources Committee, by Act dated 23rd February 1993, presented to the States a report on traffic and transport policy.

THE STATES agreed to discuss the report in a Committee of the Whole House.

Matters noted - land transactions

THE STATES noted an Act of the Finance and Economics Committee dated 8th March 1993 showing that, in pursuance of Standing Orders relating

to certain transactions in land, the Committee

had approved -

( a) as recommended by the Public Services C om mittee, to enter into a Deed of

A r ra ngement with Aubin Mews House

A s s ociation in relation to the

deve lopment of Aubin Mews, Elizabeth L ane , St. Helier , to permit the

enc r oachment of four windows to the

bound ary for a consideration of £700;

to per mit access for the purposes of

re pai r and maintenance and to agree

the bound ary between the adjacent

pr o per ty, with all legal costs to be

the r esponsibility of the developer;

( b) as recommended by the Housing

C om mittee, the granting to the Jersey

E le ct ricity Company Limited of a

w ayl eave, free of charge, and the sale

of t he site of the section pillar to

the com pany, both at Le Clos d'Avoine, F ie l ds 553 and 554, La Moye, St.

B r el ade, for the sum of £10, with each si de be ing responsible for its own

le gal costs.

Matters lodged

The following subjects were lodged au Greffe'' -

4 6 Rouge Bouillon, St. Helier : purchase. P .32/93.

P resented by the Island Development

C ommittee.

C onstitution of the States: Special C ommittee. P.34/93.

P resented by Senator Corrie Stein.

THE STATES noted that in pursuance of Standing Order 17(6) the following subject, which was lodged au Greffe'', had been withdrawn -

L awyers fees. P.39/92.

L odged: 17th March 1992. S enator R.J. Shenton.

Draft Motor Traffic (Third Party Insurance) (Amendment No. 8) (Jersey) Law 199 . P.28/93

THE STATES acceded to the request of the President of the Defence Committee that consideration of the draft Motor Traffic (Third Party Insurance) (Amendment No. 8) (Jersey) Law 199 (P.28/93 - lodged au Greffe'' on 2nd

March 1993) be deferred from the Sitting on 30th March 1993.

Arrangement of Public Business for the next Sitting on 30th March 1993

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

next Sitting on 30th March 1993 -

G rouville Hospital site: community leisure c entre. P.20/93.

L odged: 16th February 1993.

C onnétable of Grouville .

W aterfront Enterprise Board. P.16/93. L odged: 2nd February 1993.

I sland Development Committee.

W aterfront Enterprise Board

( P.16/93): amendment. P.19/93. L odged: 9th February 1993.

S enator R.J. Shenton.

W aterfront Enterprise Board

( P.16/93): second amendment. P.24/93. L odged: 16th February 1993.

D eputy S. Syvret of St. Helier .

4 6 Rouge Bouillon, St. Helier : p urchase. P.32/93.

I sland Development

C ommittee.

Police Court Magistrate: appointment. Questions and answers. (Tape No. 176)

Deputy Leonard Norman of St. Clement asked Senator Richard Joseph Shenton, President of the Establishment Committee, the following questions -

1. Will the President name those persons

w ho com prised the Appointments Board, and t hose persons who were present,

w hen c andidates for the post of Police

C our  t Magistrate were interviewed on

the af ternoon of Friday 26th February,

1993?

2 . Is the President aware that, before

at t en ding for interview, each

can di date received correspondence from the S tates Personnel Department

ind i cating that his application was

bei ng de alt with as strictly private

and c onfidential''?

3 . Will the President say how the Jersey E veni ng Post came by the information w hi ch enabled it, on the front page of it s e dition of Monday, 1st March,

1993, to name the candidates who had bee n i nterviewed on the preceding

F ri day a fternoon?

4 . If the President is unable to say how the J ersey Evening Post came by that inf or mation, will he say what steps he has t aken to investigate the matter?

5 . Is the President aware that, having

re l ied upo n the guarantee of

conf identiality, the unsuccessful

can di dates, all of whom are senior

la w y ers in the public sector, were

li kel y to suffer professional as well

as p ersonal embarrassment as a result of t he breach of confidentiality?

6 . Does the President accept that

pot ent ial applicants for States and

C r ow n appointments in the future may be de terred from applying by the

pr o s pect of their confidential

appl ications being reported on the

fr ont page of the Jersey Evening

P os t ?''

The President of the Establishment Committee replied as follows -

1. The Appointments Board comprised S ena tor Shenton, Chairman, Senator Jeu ne, r epresenting Policy and

R es ources Committee, and Senator

 H or sfall, representing Finance and

 E cono mics Committee. The Advisers to the A ppointments Board were The

 B ai l iff and Mr. Machin (Chief

 E xec utive Officer, States Personnel

 D epar tment).

2 . Yes.

3 . I suggest that the questioner puts the ques tion to the Jersey Evening Post.

4 . I am unable to answer the question

bec aus e I do not know the answer and unl es s the House so directs, I was not int end ing to do anything.

5 . No, I am not aware of that. 6 . No.''

Bouley Bay pier: closure of road. Questions and answers. (Tape No. 176)

Deputy Philip Roy Cabot of Trinity asked Deputy John Le Gallais of St. Saviour , President of the Public Services Committee, the following questions -

1. Is the President aware of the anger and r esentment felt by the part-time

and p rofessional fishermen, hoteliers,

and c afé owners of Bouley Bay caused by hi s announcement that the road

le adi ng to Bouley Bay pier would be

cl os ed? Does he not think that the

C onnét able, the President of the Boat

O w ne rs' Association and the

ow ner s/managers of the hotels and café at B ouley Bay should at the very least

have been notified of this decision,

if not consulted, before the decision

w as released to the media?

2 . At an informal meeting arranged at

shor t notice at the Water's Edge Hotel

on F riday, 12th March between the

C hi e f Engineer of Public Services, the

H ar bourmaster, the Connétable , myself as t he Parish Deputy , the President of

the B ouley Bay Boat Owners'

A s s ociation and owners of the hotels

and c afé, it was felt by all concerned

tha t it would be to everyone's

adva ntage if work to make the cliff

fa ce s afe was delayed until the end of

S ept ember. Would the President give an as s ur ance that this will be the case?

3 . It was also agreed that a temporary

w al k way should be provided to enable fi s he rmen and others to reach the

pi e r . Will the President give an

as s ur ance that work to this end will

com mence immediately?

4 . As the already limited parking at

pr e s ent available at Bouley Bay would be gr eatly reduced by the closure of

the r oad leading to the pier, will the

P re s ident give an assurance that,

tog et  her with the parish authorities,

he w ill monitor the parking situation

cl os ely and, if it is found necessary,

pr o vi de a park and ride facility to

B oul ey Bay?''

The President of the Public Services Committee replied as follows -

1. In answer to this question I need to

expl ain the background to the problem tha t has arisen at Bouley Bay.

 In 1 991 a fire in the vegetation on

 the cl iff face between the slipway and the j etty at Bouley Bay occurred and

 w hi ch required large volumes of water to ext inguish.

 T he de struction of the majority of the

 vege tation combined with the

 par t icularly dry winter of 1991/92

 cau s ed a number of small falls of rock

 and e arth from the cliff face. In June

 1992, the department erected a wooden bar r ier at the base of the cliff to

 pr e vent falling material coming onto

 the r oad and provide protection to

 pede strians and vehicles using the

 roa d. I n July, the department

 appo inted Matthew Warner and

 A s s ociates to assess the extent of the

 pr o bl em and make recommendations for it s r esolution.

 L ooki ng at the cliff face, it must be

 appa rent that the consultants' work

 w as extremely difficult, however, in

 D ecem ber they advised that the road

 shou ld be closed to non essential

 tr af f ic. The department accordingly

 pl a ced barriers across the road and

 ar r ang ed with the fishermen that they

 shou ld open and close the barrier when tr ave lling to the jetty.

 T he de partment first held discussions w i th Ma tthew Warner on their

 pr eliminary findings at the end of

 Jan uar y 1993 and prepared a report for the C ommittee on 22nd February.

 B et w een 22nd February and the

 C om mittee's meeting on 8th March,

 Ma t thew Warner's final report was

 re cei ved which persuaded the

 depa rtment's engineers to advise the

 C om mittee that the road should be

 cl os ed to both pedestrians and traffic

 im m ediately.

 T he C ommittee accepted that advice and I c onsidered the public should be

 inf or med at the first opportunity.

 I un derstand the inconvenience the

 cl os ure of the road will cause all

 tho s e who work or visit Bouley Bay.

 F ace d with independent professional

 advi ce on the degree of potential

 dang er, the Committee would have been fa i li ng in its responsibility for

 publ ic safety not to have implemented

 the dec ision it made with the least

 del ay. I t was the Committee's

 int ent ion that those who have a

 par t icular interest in Bouley Bay

 shou ld have the situation explained

 and t he meeting which took place last

 T hur sday was arranged by the

 depa rtment.

 I a cce pt it would have been a courtesy to have spoken to the Connétable of

 T ri ni  ty on Monday evening after the

 C om mittee's decision and I apologise for f ailing to do so.

2 . Yes.

3 . The feasibility of such a pedestrian

w al k way is at present being

inv es tigated as a matter of urgency

and i f a safe walkway can be provided thi s w ill be done without delay.

4 . The parking situation will be

m o ni tored by my department. However the r e are 16 parking spaces on the

je t ty, t he loss of which would not

jus ti fy a park and ride scheme.

Debate in camera

The Bailiff , in pursuance of Article 9 of the Police Force (Jersey) Law 1974 and in accordance with Standing Order 46(2), ordered the withdrawal of strangers and the closing of the

doors of the Chamber in order that the appointment of the Chief Officer of the States of Jersey Police Force be debated in

camera.

Chief Officer, States of Jersey Police Force: appointment

THE STATES, having deliberated thereon in camera, proceeded to vote in public

assembly and, adopting a proposition of the Defence Committee, appointed Mr. Robert Hugh Le Breton as Chief Officer of the States of Jersey Police Force with effect from 1st October 1993.

Debate in camera

The Bailiff , in accordance with Standing Order 46(2), ordered the withdrawal of strangers and the closing of the doors of the Chamber in order that the appointment of a Magistrate be debated in camera.

Suspension of Standing Order No. 18

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Establishment Committee, agreed to suspend Standing Order No. 18 to allow consideration at the present Sitting of the proposition of the Committee to appoint a Magistrate.

Magistrate: appointment

THE STATES, having deliberated thereon in camera, proceeded to vote in public

assembly and adopting a proposition of the Establishment Committee, appointed Mr. Terence Cubitt Sowden, Q.C., to the post of Magistrate with effect from 1st January 1994.

Customary Law (Choses Publiques) (Jersey) Law 199 . P22/93 and P.31/93

THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted in Third Reading a Law entitled the Customary Law (Choses Publiques) (Jersey) Law 1993.

Functions and Rôle of the Bailiff : Committee of the Whole House

THE STATES rejected a proposition of Senator Anthony Beresford Chinn that Standing Order No. 38A (2)(b) be suspended and that the States resolve into a Committee of the Whole House to discuss the issues arising from the proposition

of the Policy and Resources Committee regarding the Functions and Rôle of the Bailiff (P.15/93).

Functions and rôle of the Bailiff . P.15/93

THE STATES rejected paragraph (a) of a proposition of the Policy and Resources Committee to replace the existing office of Deputy Bailiff with the office of Judge of the Royal Court, whereupon the President of the Committee withdrew the remaining paragraphs (b) and (c) of the proposition.

Members present voted on paragraph (a) as follows -

  P our ' ' (23)

Senators

J eune, Binnington, Horsfall, Baal, R othwell, Carter, Stein.

Connétable s

S t. Lawrence, Trinity .

Deputies

L e Gallais(S), Rumboll(H), Wavell(S), H. B audains(C), Buesnel(H), Le Sueur (H), St. O uen, Coutanche(L), Bailhache (H), St.

M artin, Le Geyt(S), Walker (H), Pullin(S), T rinity.

C ont r e'' (24)

Senators

L e Main, Le Maistre, Quérée, Chinn.

Connétable s

S t. Clement, St. Mary , St. Brelade , St. M artin, St. Peter , Grouville , St. Helier , S t. Saviour.

Deputies

B eadle(B), Blampied(H), Norman(C), St. J ohn, St. Peter , Huelin(B), Jordan(B),

R abet(H), S. Baudains(H), Clarke-

H alifax(S), Syvret(H), Crespel(H).

Dwelling Houses (Rent Control) (Standard Tenancy Agreement) (Jersey) Regulations 1993. P.26/93

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 7 of the Dwelling Houses (Rent Control) (Jersey) Law 1946, as amended, made Regulations entitled the Dwelling Houses (Rent Control) (Standard Tenancy Agreement) (Jersey) Regulations 1993.

Draft Ecclesiastical District of St. Luke with St. James (Jersey) Law 1993 and Petition. P.27/93

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Legislation Committee -

( a) agreed to petition Her Majesty in

C ounci l for the revocation of the

O r der s in Council of the 6th day of

A pr il 1846, establishing the

E ccl esiastical District of St. Luke,

Jer s ey, and the 7th day of March 1904 es t abl ishing the District Chapelry of

S t. J ames, Jersey;

( b) requested the Bailiff to transmit the P et i tion to Her Majesty in Council; and

( c) subject to the sanction of Her Most

E xce llent Majesty in Council, adopted a L aw entitled the Ecclesiastical

D i st rict of St. Luke with St. James

(J er sey) Law 1993.

Draft Pilotage (General Provisions) (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Regulations 1993. P.30/93

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 2 of the Pilotage (Jersey) Law 1988 made Regulations entitled the Pilotage (General Provisions) (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Regulations 1993.

Adjournment

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

Sitting -

V oting and employment rights of non-British E .C. citizens. P.159/92

V oting and employment rights of non-British E .C. citizens: report. P.25/93

THE STATES rose at 5.37 p.m.

G .H .C . C O P P O C K

G r ef fi e r of the States.