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STATES MINUTES 27t h J u l y 19 93 P ri c e : £ 5.00
T HE STATES assembled on Tuesday, 27t h July 1993 at 9.30 a.m. under
t he Presidency of the Bailiff ,
S i r P eter Crill, C.B.E.
__ _______ ___
His Excellency the Lieutenant Governor, Air Marshal Sir John Sutton, K.C.B.,
w as pr e sent.
__ _______ ___
All Members were present with the exception of -
S enator Bernard Thomas Binnington - out of t he Island.
M argaret Sylvia Rose Beadle, Deputy of St. B relade - ill.
C arlyle John Le Herissier Hinault, Deputy
o f St. John - out of the Island.
M aurice Clement Buesnel, Deputy of St.
H elier - ill.
T erence Augustine Le Sueur , Deputy of St. H elier - out of the Island.
H enry George Coutanche, Deputy of St.
L awrence - out of the Island.
F rank Harris on Walker , Deputy of St.
H elier - out of the Island.
__ _______ ___
P r aye rs
__ _______ ___
Connétable of Trinity - welcome
The Bailiff , on behalf of the Members of the States, welcomed to the Assembly the newly- elected Connétable of Trinity , Mr. Brian George Dorey Richardson.
Connétable of St. Brelade - re- election
The Bailiff , on behalf of the Members of the States, congratulated the Connétable of St. Brelade , Mrs. Enid Clare Quénault, on her recent re-election to the States.
Subordinate legislation tabled
The following enactments were laid before the States, namely -
1 . Court of Appeal (Remuneration of O r di nary Judges) (Jersey) Order
1993. R & O. 8552.
2 . Royal Court (Remuneration of
C om missioners) (Jersey) Order 1993. R & O 8553.
3 . Battle of Flowers (Jersey) Order 1993. R & O 8554.
4 . Gorey Fête (Jersey) Order 1993. R & O 8555.
5 . St. Clement Fête (Jersey) Order 1993. R & O 8556.
6 . Road Traffic (Saint John)
( A m endment No. 3) (Jersey) Order 1993. R & O 8557.
7 . Road Traffic (Public Parking
P l a ces) (Amendment No. 27) (Jersey) O r der 1993. R & O 8558.
Tourism Committee - resignation of member
THE STATES noted the resignation of Deputy Frank Harris on Walker of St. Helier , from the Tourism Committee.
Oakfield Industries Limited: report and accounts for 1992. R.C.25/93
The Social Security Committee, by Act dated 7th July 1993, presented to the States the report and accounts of Oakfield Industries Limited for the period to 30th December 1992.
THE STATES ordered that the said report and accounts be printed and distributed.
Health Insurance Fund as at 30th September 1992: actuarial report. R.C.26/93
The Social Security Committee, by Act dated 7th July 1993, presented to the States the Health Insurance Fund actuarial report as at 30th September 1992.
THE STATES ordered that the said report be printed and distributed.
Matters noted - land transactions
THE STATES noted Acts of the Finance and Economics Committee dated 28th June and 19th July 1993, showing that, in pursuance of Standing Orders relating to certain transactions in land, the Committee had approved -
( a) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the
l eas e from Arradon Holdings of 14 Byron R oad, S t. Helier, for use as a
C hi ldren's Psychiatric Unit, for a
per iod of seven years from 1st March
1993 a t an annual rent of £11,100,
s ubj ect to annual review;
( b) as recommended by the Sport, Leisure
and R ecreation Committee, an Agreement w i t h Quasar Leisure Limited for the
l eas e of the Carronade Restaurant
ar eas , Fort Regent, giving the company
t he r ight to conduct concessions on
4,990 s quare feet of land in the East
D i t ch, Fort Regent from 1st May 1993 to 31s t December 2002, the annual rent to
be £ 12,476 plus five per cent of gross
t aki ngs on the first £450,000, seven
and a half per cent on the next
£ 100,0 00 and ten per cent over the
af o rementioned £550,000, to be subject
t o t riennial reviews;
( c) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the l eas e from Mrs. Lily May Stapley, née G l end ewar, of the two-bedroomed
pr op erty Flat 2, The Anchorage, La
R out e du Fort, St. Saviour , for a
per iod of one year from 1st July 1993 at an an nual rent of £6,744;
( d) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the
l eas es from Bellman Properties Limited of t he four one-bedroomed flats, Flats
1/ 4 , 53-55 Bath Street, St.Helier for a
per iod of one year with effect from 1st J une 1993 at an annual rent of £4,918
f or eac h unit;
( e) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the
l eas e from Mrs. Christine Louise
L angl ois, née Holborrow, on behalf of her son Christian John Langlois and her daugh ter Michelle Langlois, of the
t hr ee -bedroomed property No. 2 Bel
R oyal Gardens, St. Lawrence , for a
per iod of one year with effect from
17t h February 1993 at an annual rent of
£ 9,670 ;
( f) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the extension of the l eas e from Mr. Brian Le Herissier and Mr s . Patricia Le Herissier, née Eve, of t he pr operty Le Petit Fief, Fosse à
l 'E cr ivain, St. Saviour , for a period
of t wo years two months with effect
f rom 1st June 1993 at an annual rent of
£ 9,793 ;
( g) as recommended by the Harbours and A irport Committee, the assignment to I nt er lock Investments Limited of the
unexp ired portion of the lease held by C hanne l Hotels and Properties Limited of L ettings Nos. L.65. L.53 and L.53A, A v enue de la Commune, St. Peter ;
( h) as recommended by the Education
C om mittee, the granting of access and
s er vi ce rights to Liam Holdings Limited f or t he two units of accommodation
cur rently in the course of construction
on t he site of Geisha, Drury Lane, St.
H e l ier, in the total sum of £1,500,
w i t hout prejudice, and with all legal
f ee s involved to be paid by Liam
H o l dings Limited;
( i) as recommended by the Harbours and
A i r port Committee, the lease to Channel I sl and s Handling Limited of 341 square f ee t of office accommodation within the E l izab eth Terminal for the period 1st
J une 1993 to 31st October 1998, at an
annua l rent of £4,296.60, subject to
annua l review and payable six monthly i n a dvance;
( j) as recommended by the Harbours and A i r port Committee, the lease to Condor ( Je r sey) Limited of 372 square feet of
of fi ce accommodation within the
E l izab eth Terminal for a period of
t hr ee years from 1st June 1993, at an
annua l rent of £4,713.24, subject to
annua l reviews on 1st November and
paya ble six monthly in advance;
( k) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the
l eas e from Mrs. Beryl Joan Cadiou, née B oul ter, of the two-bedroomed property L e N id, Langley Park, St. Saviour , for a pe riod of one year with effect from
1s t J une 1993 at an annual rent of
£ 7,508 ;
( l) as recommended by the Housing
C om mittee, the sale of a strip of land
f ive f eet six inches wide and 102 feet
l on g, adjacent to the south-eastern
bounda ry of 152 Clos des Sables, St.
B r el ade, to Mr. Mark William Langford and M rs. Theresa Ann Langford, née
B er tram, for the sum of £566, with Mr. and M rs. Langford being responsible for t he i r own legal fees and for the
r ea s onable legal fees of the public,
t he s ale to be subject to the condition
t ha t no buildings, walls or fences
w o ul d be erected on the land;
( m) as recommended by the Housing
C om mittee, the granting to Mr. Yves
F r an cis Le Beuvant and his sister-in-
l aw Mrs. Phyllis Evelyn Le Beuvant, née N o el , of access rights from the public
r oa dway leading to Le Clos des Fonds,
G r ouvi lle to the rear garden of the
pr op erty Ker Briac for the sole purpose
of t he development of a single dwelling hous e, for the sum of £1,000 plus all
l egal expenses arising from the
t rans action;
( n) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the
l eas e from Mr. Nigel George Gillard of t he t wo-bedroomed property, Le Pot
d' O r, Rue du Moulin, St. Peter 's
V a l ley, St. Peter , for a period of one
year with effect from 1st July 1993 at
an a nnual rent of £6,240;
( o) as recommended by the Public
H e al th Committee, the renewal of the
l eas e from Mrs. Monica Billot
C ot illard, née Le Quesne, of the two-
bedr oomed property L'Hermitage Farm F l a t, Les Varines, St. Saviour , for a
per iod of one year with effect from
23r d April 1993, at an annual rent of
£ 6,414 .
Matters noted - financial transactions
THE STATES noted Acts of the Finance and Economics Committee dated 28th June and 19th July 1993, showing that in pursuance of Rule 5 of the Public Finances (General) (Jersey) Rules 1967, as amended, the Committee had noted that -
( a) the Public Services Committee had
acc epted the lowest of five tenders,
nam ely that submitted by Amec Marine L i m ited in the sum of £6,851,307.10 in a co ntract period of 65 weeks for the
ci vi l engineering works associated with t he deve lopment of the west of Albert
P has e II land reclamation project;
( b) the Housing Committee had accepted the l ow est of six tenders, namely that
s ubm itted by Charles Le Quesne (1956)
L i m ited in the sum of £2,446,194 in a
cont ract period of 70 weeks for the
S t a tes Loan development at Field 1311,
S t . H elier;
( c) the Housing Committee had accepted the l ow est of six tenders, namely that
s ubm itted by J.P. Mauger Limited in the
s um of £429,999.98 in a contract period
of 4 0 weeks for the development of
S t a tes rental accommodation at 16 Val
P l a isant, St. Helier ;
( d) the Harbours and Airport Committee had acc epted the lowest of nine tenders,
nam ely that submitted by J. F. Marett &
S on L imited, in the sum of £147,516.00
i n a contract period of 15 weeks for
t he cons truction of a Radar Station at
L es Platons;
( e) the Housing Committee had accepted the l ow est of six tenders, namely that
s ubm itted by A.C. Mauger and Son
( S unw in) Limited, in the sum of
£ 6,774 ,877 in a contract period of 130
w e eks for the development of States
r en tal accommodation on the former
C ont inental Hotel site.
Matters lodged
The following subjects were lodged au Greffe'' -
1 . Draft Nursing and Residential
H o m es (Jersey) Law 199 . P.102/93. P r es ented by the Public Health
C om mittee.
2 . La Vieille Chapelle, La Rue du C ham p du Rey, St. Martin : sale. P .103/ 93.
P r es ented by the Housing C om mittee.
3 . 29/31 Val Plaisant, St. Helier : r ed evelopment. P.104/93.
P r es ented by the Housing
C om mittee.
4 . Draft Public Finances
( A dm inistration) (Amendment No. 7) ( Je r sey) Law, 199 . P.105/93.
P r es ented by the Finance and
E conom ics Committee.
5 . Liberation 50th Anniversary
cel ebr ations. P.106/93.
P r es ented by the Occupation and L i be ration Committee.
6 . Compensation claims by ex - internees. P.107/93.
P r es ented by Senator J.S. R ot hwell.
The following subjects were lodged on 6th July 1993 -
1 . Draft Costs in Criminal Cases
( W itnesses' Allowances) (Amendment N o . 3 ) (Jersey) Regulations 199 .
P .84/ 93.
P r es ented by the Finance and
E conom ics Committee.
2 . Draft Treaty on Open Skies
( P ri vileges and Immunities) (Jersey) L aw 199 . P.85/93.
P r es ented by the Policy and
R es ources Committee.
3 . Field 1007, St. John :
deve lopment. P.86/93.
P r es ented by Senator R.J. S hent on.
4 . Building loans: maximum rate of i nt er est. P.87/93.
P r es ented by Senator R.J.
S hent on.
5 . Information by Committees to Mem bers. P.88/93.
P r es ented by Senator N.L.
Q u ér ée.
The following subjects were lodged on 13th July 1993 -
1 . Superintendent Registrar's
of fi ce: lease of part of 1-3 Church S t reet , St. Helier . P.89/93.
P r es ented by the Island
D e vel opment Committee.
2 . Draft Health Insurance
( C ondi tions for Approval of Medical P r ac titioners) (Jersey) Regulations
199 . P .90/93.
P r es ented by the Social Security
C om mittee.
3 . Belles Fleurs Nursery, La Rue au
B l an cq, Grouville : dwelling. P.91/93. P r es ented by the Island
D e vel opment Committee.
4 . St. Helier Waterfront plan -
w e s t of Albert reclamation site:
pr op osed use for housing. P.92/93. P r es ented by the Island
D e velopment Committee.
5 . Draft Police Force (Amendment
N o . 5 ) (Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed D a y ) Act 1993. P.93/93.
P r es ented by the Defence
C om mittee.
6 . Draft Sea-Fisheries
( M i scellaneous Provisions) (Amendment N o . 7 ) (Jersey) Regulations 199 .
P .94/ 93.
P r es ented by the Agriculture and
F i sher ies Committee.
7 . Draft Customary Law (Choses
P ubl iques) (Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed D a y ) Act 199 . P.95/93.
P r es ented by the Public Services
C om mittee.
8 . Draft Licensing (No. 7) (Jersey)
R egul ations 199 (P.68/93): amendments. P .96/ 93.
P r es ented by the Tourism
C om mittee.
9 . Draft Social Security
( R ec iprocal Agreement with Canada) ( Je r sey) Act 199 . P.97/93.
P r es ented by the Social Security
C om mittee.
1 0. Grouville Hospital site:
t rans fer of administration of land. P .98/ 93.
P r es ented by the Public Health
C om mittee.
1 1. Golf course, Les Creux, St.
B r el ade: construction. P.99/93. P r es ented by the Sport, Leisure and R ecreation Committee.
1 2. Highbury House, Five Oaks, St. S avi our: acquisition. P.100/93.
P r es ented by the Island
D e vel opment Committee.
1 3. Public Lotteries Board:
appoi ntment of members. P.101/93. P r es ented by the Gambling
C ont rol Committee.
Health Insurance (Conditions for Approval of Medical Practitioners) (Jersey) Regulations 199 . P.124/92. Withdrawn
THE STATES noted that the President of the Social Security Committee had withdrawn the Health Insurance (Conditions for Approval of Medical Practitioners) (Jersey) Regulations 199 (lodged on 25th August 1992) having lodged revised draft Regulations (P.90/93) on 13th July 1993.
Information by Committees to Members. P.88/93. Withdrawn
THE STATES noted that Senator N.L. Quérée had withdrawn his proposition regarding Information by Committees to Members (lodged on 6th July 1993).
Arrangement of Public Business for the present Sitting
THE STATES confirmed that the following subjects lodged au Greffe'' should be considered at the present Sitting -
D raft Customary Law (Choses Publiques)
( Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed Day) Act 199 . P .95/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
P ublic Services Committee.
D raft Licensing (No. 7)
( Jersey) Regulations 199 (P.68/93): a mendments. P.96/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
T ourism Committee.
P ublic Lotteries Board: appointment
o f members. P.101/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
G ambling Control Committee
D raft Costs in Criminal
C ases (Witnesses' Allowances) (Amendment N o. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 199 . P.84/93.
L odged: 6th July 1993.
F inance and Economics Committee.
D raft Treaty on Open Skies
( Privileges and Immunities) (Jersey) Law 1 99 . P.85/93.
L odged: 6th July 1993.
P olicy and Resources Committee.
S uperintendent Registrar's office:
l ease of part of 1-3 Church Street, St. H elier. P.89/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
I sland Development Committee.
D raft Health Insurance (Conditions
f or Approval of Medical Practitioners) ( Jersey) Regulations 199 . P.90/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
S ocial Security Committee.
B elles Fleurs Nursery, La Rue
a u Blancq, Grouville : dwelling. P.91/93. L odged: 13th July 1993.
I sland Development Committee.
D raft Police Force (Amendment No. 5) ( Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed Day) Act 1 99 . P.93/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
D efence Committee.
D raft Social Security
( Reciprocal Agreement with Canada) (Jersey) A ct 199 . P.97/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
S ocial Security Committee.
G rouville Hospital site: transfer of a dministration of land. P.98/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
P ublic Health Committee.
Golf course, Les Creux, St. Brelade : c onstruction. P.99/93.
L odged: 13th July 1993.
S port, Leisure and
R ecreation Committee.
H ighbury House, Five Oaks,
S t. Saviour: acquisition. P.100/93. L odged: 13th July 1993.
I sland Development C ommittee.
Public Lotteries Board: appointment of members. P.101/93
THE STATES acceded to the request of the President of the Gambling Control Committee that consideration of the proposition to appoint members of the Public Lotteries Board be taken as the first item under Public Business.
Golf course, Les Creux, St. Brelade : consideration. P.99/93
THE STATES rejected the proposition of the Connétable of St. Brelade that consideration of the proposition of the golf course at Les Creux, St. Brelade , be deferred to a later date and agreed to take it into consideration immediately after the proposition to set up a Special Committee on the Constitution of the States.
Arrangement of Public Business for the next Sitting on 24th August 1993
THE STATES confirmed that the following subjects lodged au Greffe'' should be considered at the
next Sitting on 24th August 1993 -
F ield 1007, St. John : development. P .86/93.
L odged: 6th July 1993.
S enator R.J. Shenton.
B uilding loans: maximum rate
o f interest. P.87/93.
L odged: 6th July 1993.
S enator R.J. Shenton.
( Comments of the Finance and
E conomics Commitee and the Housing C ommittee to follow).
D raft Sea Fisheries (Miscellaneous
P rovisions) (Amendment No. 7) (Jersey) R egulations 199 . P.94/93.
A griculture and Fisheries Committee.
L a Vieille Chapelle, La Rue du Champ d u Rey, St. Martin : sale. P.103/93.
H ousing Committee.
2 9/31 Val Plaisant, St.
H elier: redevelopment. P.104/93. H ousing Committee.
D raft Public Finances
( Administration) (Amendment No. 7) (Jersey) L aw 199 . P.105/93.
F inance and Economics Committee.
L iberation 50th
A nniversary celebrations. P.106/93.
O ccupation and Liberation Committee.
C ompensation claims by ex-internees. P .107/93.
S enator J.S.Rothwell
Longbeach, Gorey. Questions and answers (Tape No. 195)
Senator Corrie Stein asked Deputy Leonard Norman, President of the Housing Committee the following questions -
1. Wo uld the President give the
reas o ns why the Housing Committee gr ant ed c onsent for the two larger
fl at s c ons tructed at Longbeach,
G or e y, t o be occupied by persons
qua l i fyi ng under Regulation
1 (1 ) ( k ) of the Housing (General
P rovi s ions) (Jersey) Regulations,
197 0?
2 . Did the Housing Committee take into
cons ideration the debates on Longbeach w h en t he President of the Island
D e vel opment Committee assured the
S t a tes that in no way would these be
l ux ury flats but twelve flats at prices
f rom £120,000 - £137,000, and would be s maller than States Loan houses and be
avai lable for first time buyers - i.e.
l oc al people - and that the two larger
f lat s were to be occupied by the
deve loper and his sister?
3 . Was it a unanimous decision of the
H o us ing Committee to grant consent for t w o 1 (1)(k) flats?''
The President of the Housing Committee replied as follows -
1. T he Housing Committee administers
the H ous ing Law. It is under that
L aw t hat the Committee is
em pow ered to attach occupancy
co ndi t ions to land. All occupancy
co ndi t ions imposed are designed to
en s ur e that residential land is
res er ved for occupation by persons
w ho qu alify under the Housing
R egu lat ions. In most cases,
oc cupan cy conditions restrict oc cupat ion to those qualifying und er R egulation 1(1)(a)-(h) -
e.g . J er sey-born, children of
Je r s e y -born, and so on; in some ca s es , cond itions restrict
oc cupan cy to those qualifying und er 1 (1)(a)-(j) - which includes al l t hos e who qualify under
1 (1 ) ( a) -(h) plus essential
em pl oyee s; and in fewer cases, co ndi t ions restrict occupancy to thos e w ho qualify under 1(1)(a)- (k ) , w hi ch includes not only those qua l i fyi ng under Regulation (a)- (h ) , a nd es sential employees, but al s o t hos e who have been allowed to buy p roperty in the Island on ec onom ic or social grounds.
C l ea rly the Committee's priority in the i m pos ition of conditions is to reserve as m uch land as possible to those who qual ify under Regulation 1(1)(a)-(h).
Whi lst the Housing Law gives the
H o us ing Committee powers to impose the condi tions it sees fit in any given
s it ua tion, the Attorney General has
r ep eatedly advised the Committee that
i t has a clear legal obligation to be
ad m inistratively consistent' in the
m anner in which it applies the Law.
Whe re an applicant who is dissatisfied
w i t h a decision of the Committee made
under the Law appeals to the Court and
can show that the Committee has acted
i nc ons istently, without good reason,
t he n he h as good grounds for a
s ucc essful appeal.
Whe n imposing occupancy conditions, the H o us ing Committee over many years has pur sued a policy that, in order to
enco urage developers to build more (a)-
( h ) r esidential units, it will grant
( a )- (j) and (a)-(k) conditions for some
of t he units built. The objective is to
get m ore units built, especially on
l and w hich is classified as commercial
or o n which large (a)-(j) or (a)-(k)
pr op erties already exist and are to
f or m the basis of a redevelopment. This pol icy has been successful in promoting
t he cr eation of many hundreds of
addi tional residential units over the
year s.
T he L ongbeach site was virtually a w h ol ly commercial site. Had the deve lopers asked, at the time the deve lopment commenced, for a portion of t he pr operties to be classified (a)-(j)
or ( a)-(k), the Housing Committee would not have hesitated to accede to this in
acc ordance with its normal policy.
I n o rder that the policy be as flexible
as p ossible in encouraging the
cons truction of new residential units,
es pe cially on commercial land, the
C om mittee has for many years been
pr e pared to allow developers to apply
f or a po rtion of (a)-(j) and (a)-(k)
uni ts in a development following the com pletion of the development. This is al l ow ed where the Committee is
s at i sfied that it would have granted a
por tion of such units if it had been
as ke d to do so before the commencement of t he development.
I n t he case of the Longbeach
deve lopment, the Committee received an appl ication for two of the flats to be
r ec l assified as (a)-(j) and two (a)-(k)
af ter the completion of the
deve lopment. Given the policy of
s ucc essive Housing Committees
( incl uding the present one) over the
year s, and the legal requirement on the C om mittee to be consistent in the
m anner in which it handles individual appl ications under the Housing Law, the C om mittee had no alternative other than t o a llow a portion of the units to be
r ec l assified. (Legal advice from the
C r ow n Officers on this particular case
l ef t the Committee in no doubt that
t hi s was necessary). The Committee did not accede to the request for two (a)-
( j) a nd two (a)-(k) units, but it did
agr ee to allow the two penthouse units
t o b e reclassified (a)-(k).
H a d t he Committee rejected the
appl ication completely, there could be l it tl e doubt that the matter would have been referred to Court. The Committee s aw no point at all in asking the Crown O f f icers to allocate scarce and
expe nsive staff resources to defend a pos ition which was almost certainly
i nc apab le of being defended.
T he po licy itself remains one which has been extremely successful over many year s in encouraging the development of m any ne w residential units,
par ticularly on commercial land, and one w hich still has an important rôle
t o p lay.
I s houl d add that this policy does not appl y to land rezoned by the States for cat egor y A' housing.
2 . I do not think that the President of
t he I sland Development Committee
com mented in precisely the terms
r ep orted in Question 2, although it is
t rue t hat he did make comments along
t he s e lines. Whilst the Housing
C om mittee did give consideration to his com ments, it could not allow this to
i nf l uence its decision. I repeat that
t he C ommittee administers a Law, and is r eq uired to make consistent decisions
under the Law based on considerations
w h i ch it is obliged to take into
acc ount under the Law. The views
expr essed by the President of the
I sl and Development Committee are not a m at ter which the Committee can take
cogni sance of when making decisions
under the Law. The Island Planning Law does not give that Committee, let alone
i ts P resident, the power to impose land
occu pancy conditions.
I s houl d add that simply because the
t w o penthouse apartments have been
r ec l assified as 1(1)(a)-(k) does not of cour se mean that they are not able to
be oc cupied by those qualifying under
1 ( 1 )(a)-(h) or essential employees.
T hey a re able to be occupied by anybody w h o qual ifies for a consent from the
C om mittee under the Law. Indeed, it is ver y common for a new property with an ( a )- (k) classification to be occupied
by s omebody who has an (a)-(h)
qual ification.
3 . The decision of the Committee was not unani mous.''
Lump-sum payments. Question and answer (Tape No. 195)
Deputy Alan Payn Bree of Grouville asked Senator Richard Joseph Shenton, President of the Establishment Committee the following question -
Will the President kindly inform the
S tates of the amounts of lump-sum payments ( excluding such lump-sum payments as are
m ade on condition of the acceptance of a
r educed pension from the Public Employees' P ension Fund) made to public employees who a ccepted early retirement during the period
1 st January 1990 to date, with an
i ndication of the votes from which those
p ayments were made?
The President of the Establishment replied as follows -
Because the question affects many former p ublic servants and in order that I can
g ive a considered and full response to the
q uestion, I wish to consult with the
P ensions Officer in the Department, among
o thers. Unfortunately he was on leave when
t he question was received and so I have
b een unable to speak to him. However, I
a ccept the question and will respond at the n ext Sitting of the States.''
Fairview Farm, La Rue du Trot, St. Martin . Statement
The President of the Island Development Committee made a statement in the following terms -
1.0 Introduction
1 .1 Members of the House will recall
t ha t earlier this year a series of
pr op ositions and debates were heard in t he H ouse in relation to development
pr op osals at the new Fairview Farm in S t . M artin. The application seeks
pl anni ng consent for -
(a ) a pac king shed 720 sq.m.
(b ) a s tock unit 75 0 s q.m.
(c ) a s ee d store 1,3 02 sq.m.
(d ) s t af f accommodation 407 sq.m.
T hes e buildings are designed to operate i n c onjunction with the silage store
and t he existing dairy. The existing
dai r y measures 1,592 sq.m.
1 .2 The first proposition (P.36) lodged
by S enator R.J. Shenton on 30th March 1993 s upported a petition with 607
s ignat ures and read as follows -
T hat t he Agriculture and
F is her ies Committee be directed to take a ppr opriate action to remedy w i thout undue delay the nuisance
w hi ch ha s been caused by smells
fr om a r ecently-established
ag r i cul tural unit situated at M auf a nt in the parishes of St. S av iour and St. Martin .'
1 .3 This proposition generated a report
f rom the Agriculture and Fisheries
C om mittee on 11th May in relation to
t he Maufant smell' which contained the f ol l owing recommendation -
(a ) that due to the siting of Fairview
F ar m i n close proximity to Maufant V i ll a ge (and while accepting that
the f ar m is well managed) to
di r e ct t he Agriculture and
F is her ies Committee to take every reas o nabl e action to reduce the
sm el l em anating from the farm by
und er t aking the work detailed in
pr opos als 1, 2, 3 and 7 of this
repor t a t an approximate cost of
£ 44 ,500;
( b ) that the cost be borne by
the A gr iculture and Fisheries C om m ittee, and that it request rei m bur sement at the October S upp ly D ay'.
1 .4 This proposition was agreed by the
S t a tes by a substantial majority. On
t he s ame day, a proposition of the
A g r iculture and Fisheries Committee was deba ted and adopted. It read -
t o r eque st the Island Development
C om mittee to consider immediately an
appl ication by Fairview Farm Limited to cons truct additional buildings at
F ai rview Farm, St. Saviour , application N o . 4/ 5/5459/P.
1 .5 Furthermore, on that day, Senator S hent on presented a further petition ( P .62 ) from 15 signatories and
r eq uested -
t ha t t he I sland Development
C om m ittee be requested to take
ap pr opr iate action to ensure that
the co ns truction of the proposed
ag r i cul tural buildings by Fairview F ar m L imited at Fairview Farm,
M auf a nt, St. Martin , takes place
no c los er to the existing
dw el l i ngs in the Maufant Village
de vel opm ent than the existing farm bui l d ings '.
1 .6 At the Senator's request, the States agr eed to suspend Standing Orders to
enab le the proposition to be debated
t he s ame day thus depriving the Island D e vel opment Committee the opportunity of r esponding to it as required under
S t a nding Order 10. The proposition was adopt ed.
2 .0 History of development proposals
2 .1 Planning permission was granted on
4t h September 1986 to build a new farm uni t, including various outbuildings,
dai r y buildings and a stock building.
T he a pproved drawings show the dairy w h er e it has been built and a large
out building with staff accommodation, m eas uring 1,323 sq.m., in what is
pr e sently the yard to the north.
2 .2. D evelopment permission was granted on 2 4t h November 1986 to build a
ne w f ar m unit and cattle housing,
w i th s i lage clamp and storage
tank. T he drawings approved showed the da i ry building as subsequently
bui l t an d the present yard
oc cupi ed by a large outbuilding,
incor por ating staff accommodation,
m eas ur ing 1,485 sq.m.
2 .3 One of a number of conditions
s ti pul ated at the planning stage, and
agai n when development permission was gr anted, read as follows -
t ha t t he pr oposed agricultural
bui ldings shall be used for
agr icultural purposes only, in
as soci ation with the farm unit hereby appr oved'.
3 .0 Current position
3 .1 Since the last series of debates in
t he H ouse, the Island Development
C om mittee has held meetings with the appl icant (Fairview Farm Limited) and r ec ei ved a delegation from the Maufant R es idents' Group. The purpose of these m eet ings was to seek full clarification
i n r elation to the applicant's
i nt ent ions and to listen to the views
of s ome of the residents of the area.
T he de bates in the House had identified a num ber of issues on which Members w e r e agreed -
( i) that the States wished to see
the pr obl em of the Maufant smell' al l evi a ted by a series of separate
m eas ur es, the effectiveness of
w hi ch would be monitored by the D epa rt ment of Agriculture and
F is her ies, rather than by
rel o cat ion of the farm itself;
( ii ) t hat the States were opposed to a co m m ercial packing operation
ha ndl i ng produce beyond that
ge ner a ted by the land owned or
rent ed by F airview Farm Limited.
3 .2 However, the last proposition from S enat or R.J. Shenton (P.62) which
r ea ds -
t ha t t he Island Development
C om m ittee be requested to take
ap pr opr iate action to ensure that
the co ns truction of the proposed
ag r i cul tural buildings by Fairview F ar m L imited at Fairview Farm, St. M ar ti n , takes place no closer to
the ex i sting dwellings in the
M auf a nt Village development than the ex i sting farm buildings,'
gi v es cause for concern on a number of c ounts -
( a ) it ignores the planning consent
gr ant ed i n 1986 for further
de vel opm ent north of the existing da i r y, and could therefore
ne ces s itate revocation and lead to a c la i m for compensation;
( b ) it fails to recognise that there
ar e l egi timate agricultural
ac t ivi t ies that can be carried out in t h i s a rea without prejudice to ad j oi ni ng residents, thus
pot ent ially giving rise to claims that t he Committee acted
unr eas onably in following the
S tat e s de cision;
( c ) it tacitly suggests relocation of the pr opos ed agricultural
bui l d ings south of the dairy,
w her e t here would be a further los s o f agricultural land and a
st r o ng l ikelihood of prejudice to res ident s in La Rue du Trot;
( d ) the spread' of buildings further
so ut h t owards La Hougue Bie which is i m pl icit in the proposition
w oul d be v isually undesirable and
w oul d not consolidate the existing far m gr oup within the boundary of the ex i sting landscaping and yard ar ea;
( e ) it does not accurately reflect the pe t ition which read as
fol low s -
P .62: The humble residents of
Mauf ant s ituated in the
P ar is h o f S t. Martin shows
tha t t he pr oposed location
of a new pac king shed to be
cons t ru ct e d by Fairview Farm L im it ed a ppr oximately
40 m et r es f rom dwellings
w i ll cr eat e a nuisance
af f ect i n g t he quality of
li fe o f ne ar by residents and
be co nt r ar y to the States'
bad nei ghbour ' policy.
A c cor dingly your petitioners pr ay t ha t t he Island
D e vel opm ent Committee be
requ es ted t o take
appr opr iat e action to ensure
tha t t he c ons truction of the
pr opo s ed s hed takes place no cl o s er t ha n exi sting
bui l di ngs '.
T hi s pe tition was not referred to the I s la nd Development Committee for c om ment under Standing Order 10 a nd t hus the Committee was una bl e to explain to States'
M em ber s its implications under
S tandi ng Order 10(a) prior to its be i ng d ebated.
3 .3 The Island Development Committee is conc erned that if it acted solely upon
t he l ast States' decision (P.62) then
t he bes t interests of the community
w o ul d not be best served because it
w o ul d not have properly discharged its
r es pons ibilities under the Island
P l a nning Law. The Committee has in the pas t been reminded by the Crown
O f f icers that it is the Committee's
r es pons ibility and its duty under the
L aw to make a reasoned planning
j ud gement on an application having
r eg ard to the merits of the individual
cas e. Having considered all the factors
of t his case, and having had full
r eg ard to the decisions of the States,
t he C ommittee intends to grant planning per mission subject to a number of
i m por tant qualifications. These are -
( i) the staff block shown within the
nor t h er n extremity of the site
sh al l be relocated to the existing
ya r d a r ea, to move the staff
ac com modation further from Maufant V i ll a ge;
( ii ) no ne w vehicular access to the far m s hall be formed and all
tr af f i c s hall continue to use the
ex is t in g access from La Rue du T rot , t o centralise vehicle
m ovem ents as much as possible;
( ii i) t he packing and machinery shed shal l b e relocated so
tha t i ts nor thern boundary
equat es w i th the proposed
seed s t or e and the boundary of t he e xi s ting yard. The
rem ai ni ng yar d area is thus kept i n t he centre of the
far m com plex, to ensure that any f ar m noi se is kept to a
m i ni m um ;
( iv ) the existing banking between the ya r d a nd t he field south of the
hou ses in Maufant be enlarged and the as s ociated planting increased, to i m pr ove the visual and noise
reduci ng qualities of the existing
ba nki n g;
( v ) that the packing shed shall be
us ed s o lely for the packing of
pr oduce from Fairview Farm
L im it e d. That is to say, that all
pr oduce packed on site derives
so l el y f rom land owned or rented by F a i rview Farm Limited, to
pr even t an escalation of packing ac t ivi t y beyond that arising
di r e ct l y from Fairview Farm
L im it e d;
( vi ) the new building identified as the st ock bui lding is not approved for the pr es ent, until such time that
it ha s be en demonstrated
co ncl us ively that the measures
ad opt e d to alleviate smells at the
far m ha ve proved successful.
4 .0 Conclusion
4 .1 On balance therefore, my Committee has deci ded to approve the application
beca use to react solely in response to
t he S tates' decision would not be in
t he bes t interests of the community and w o ul d be a dereliction of its duty
under the Island Planning Law to
cons ider each application on its
m er its. It is clear that it is possible
f or bui ldings to be constructed to the
nor th of the existing dairy without
pr e judicing nearby residential
pr op erties. My Committee considers that t he pr oper and responsible course is to gr a nt a conditional planning permission f or cer tain of the works proposed as
par t of the current application, but in
vi ew of the sensitive history of the
s it e a nd previous debates, my Committee w i s hes to inform the States of this
deci sion.''
Trade and Industry Sub-Committee. Statement
The President of the Finance and Economics Committee made a statement in the following terms -
The Finance and Economics Committee in t he light of views expressed in the
S trategic Policy Review and Action Plan
1 993 and by the President of the Chamber of C ommerce, and following consultation with t he Policy and Resources Committee, has
d ecided to set up a Trade and Industry Sub- C ommittee.
T he Sub-Committee will be chaired by the
V ice-President of the Finance and Economics C ommittee, Deputy D.R. Maltwood, and will c omprise three members of the States in
a ddition to the Chairman and four
r epresentatives of trade and industry. The
f ollowing have agreed to be members -
S enat or A.B. Chinn
D e put y J.N. Le Fondré
D e put y C.J. Hinault
Mr . R .G. Groombridge Chief Manager, Nat i on al Westminster Bank Jersey
Mr . R . Henkhuzens Vice-President,
C ham be r of C om merce
C hai rm an , J er s ey
B us i nes s V ent ur e
P ar tn er , C oo per s and
L ybr and C h ar t ered
A cco unt a nt s
Mr . N .A. Sayers Managing Director,
C han nel I s land s
C om mercial Group Mr . J . King C ha irman, Sigma Group and f or m e r ly M anaging
D i r ect or of O ve rseas
T r a di ng C or p or ation.
T he Sub-Committee will be
s upported administratively by the Office of t he Chief Adviser.
T he Sub-Committee will -
1 . provide for those sectors of industry t ha t are not separately represented by ot h er Committees. The sectors to be cove red include manufacturing,
cons truction, wholesaleing and
r et ai ling and consumer and business s er vi ces generally;
2 . involve itself in general issues
bear ing on trade and industry with
w h i ch the Finance and Economics
C om mittee has been and continues to be i nv olved - the rate of inflation,
enqui ries into prices' (e.g. retail
pr ices , oil prices, building materials
pr ices , commercial rents, etc.);
3 . provide a link with the Jersey
B us iness Venture Advisory Service to w h i ch the Finance and Economics
C om mittee has given financial support, and c onsider requests for support under t he O verseas Trade Promotion Scheme;
4 . give political support to the Office of t he C hief Adviser in providing a one s top' business enterprise unit to
pr om ote the Island generally as a
bus iness location, and to assist those i nt er ested in either the establishment of n ew or the expansion of existing
bus inesses. As stated in the Strategic P ol icy Review and Action Plan 1993 indi vidual firms confronted by the
need to approach a number of States C om mittees in order to advance their bus iness plans would be assisted it is bel i eved if there exists a single point of c ontact within the States
adm inistration which would have
r es pons ibility for bringing together
t he var ious interested parties to
f ac i litate the investment and job
cr eat ion proposed;'
5 . meet regularly with
bus iness organisations - the Chamber of C om merce, the Institute of Directors -
J er s ey Branch, the Builders Federation
and o ther appropriate bodies - to
di scus s proposals and issues of concern cove red by the Sub-Committee's remit.''
Employment Enterprise Board. Statement
The Vice-President of the Social Security Committee made a statement in the following terms -
Earlier this year, following various
i nitiatives resulting from an substantial
i ncrease in the number of registered
u nemployed, a group of interested parties
j oined together in order to address the
f uture needs of the unemployed. From the
o utset it was envisaged that this group
w ould work in conjunction with, and as an
e xtension of, existing agencies such as the
S ocial Security Job Centre. The time has
n ow come for these arrangements to become m ore clearly defined, and although the
p rimary purpose of the restructured
E mployment Enterprise Board is, and
r emains, to provide improved opportunities f or the unemployed people of Jersey, it is
p roposed now to constitute it formally as a
s ub-committee reporting to and responsible t o the Social Security Committee. In order
t o accomplish this, its terms of reference
w ill include -
( 1) ascertaining further details of the
com position of the unemployed
popul ation by age, sex, qualifications, abi l ities and aspirations;
( 2) assessing requirements for support and t rai ning of the unemployed in order
t ha t they are better able to take up
and r etain existing job opportunities;
( 3) extending the existing programme to
pr ov ide temporary employment over the w i nt er period by initiatives within
bot h the public and private sectors.
S uch terms of reference, by no means
e xhaustive, require the active co-operation
a nd assistance of a variety of bodies, and
h ence will become a valuable adjunct to
d evelopments already being undertaken
t hrough the Job Centre. It is only right
t hat the Employment Enterprise Board should b e linked to a States' Committee, and that
t he Social Security Committee should be the b ody to accept that responsibility.
W hilst the Social Security Committee will
g ladly accept and sponsor such a group, it
i s nevertheless essential that the Board
r etains a broad, independent and committed
m embership of parties able to make a
p ositive contribution to the above aims. I
a m happy to advise Members of the names of
t hose who have agreed to serve on this new
E mployment Enterprise Board, and
p articularly that of its proposed chairman,
M r. Dewi Rees, a recent immigrant to the
I sland who was a former director of the Manpower Services Commission and who brings a wealth of experience to the position. The
n ames of the members are detailed below,
a nd I take this opportunity of thanking
t hem publicly for agreeing to serve, and
a ssure them of my Committee's support and
e ncouragement.
M embers Mr. Dewi Rees (Chairman) S en at o r Nigel Quérée
D eput y D avid Crespel
D eput y E velyn Pullin
D eput y T erry Le Sueur
M r . B eva n Anthony
M r . A dr ian Blampied
M r s . H ilary Brooks
M r . T om Gales
M r . R obi n Hacquoil
M r . M ick Kavanagh
M r . C ol in Powell
M r s . E lizabeth Rees
M r . N or man Robson
M r . H um phrey Rudgard
M r s . A nne Watkins.''
Chief Executive Officer, Sport, Leisure and Recreation Department. Statement
The President of the Establishment Committee made a statement in the following terms -
It is with considerable sadness that I
r ise today to make a statement concerning
t he departure of Miss Mary Alexander from
h er post of Chief Officer, Sport, Leisure
a nd Recreation. Sadness' because I believe
t hat, as President of the Establishment
C ommittee, it is normally incumbent upon me t o maintain confidentiality when dealing
w ith personal matters affecting individual
e mployees. Sadness', because, in doing so,
I have to relate in public the reasons
w hich had led up to the termination of her
c ontract.
I t has long been a cardinal principle
o f government that Committees are publicly
r esponsible for the actions of their civil
s ervants. Civil servants are not permitted
t o make public pronouncements relating to m atters of which they have knowledge in an
o fficial capacity, nor may they take a
p ublic part in any political matter. The
c orollary of these inhibitions is that
c ivil servants are entitled to the
protection of their political masters in a
p ublic forum. It is contrary to good
c onstitutional practice for politicians
p ublicly to criticise their officials. In
p rivate they may naturally hold their
o fficials to account for mistakes or
i ncompetence, but in public they should
t ake responsibility themselves for the
e rrors of their civil servants. This may be
s aid to be particularly important in the
S tates' Chamber itself, because members are c lothed by law with absolute immunity for
t heir utterances upon the floor of the
H ouse.
I t is because I believe firmly in this
p rinciple that, as President of the
E stablishment Committee, I sought to raise t his matter with States' Members by means
o f an in camera' debate and why, up until n ow, I have maintained a silence in the
f ace of the various untruths and half-
t ruths that have been put before the public
o f this Island over recent weeks. Members w ill appreciate how difficult this has been f or me!
I am making this statement today,
t herefore, only because of Miss Alexander's
o wn express wish that these matters be made p ublic, although I have also taken into
a ccount the considerable public interest
t hat has arisen in this matter, and the
f alse rumours and gossip that have attended
o n her departure. It will remain my
d eclared intention, however, to continue to d eal with such matters in confidence and I w ill not accept that this statement can be
u sed as a precedent for the way in which
s imilar cases will be dealt with in future.
M iss Alexander was one of a large number
o f applicants (over 120) for the post
o f Chief Officer, Sport, Leisure and
R ecreation, when it was advertised in July 1 991. She, along with a further seven other c andidates, was shortlisted and interviewed b y an Appointments Board which consisted
o f -
S en at o r J.S. Rothwell, Chairman, S en at o r T.J. Le Main,
D eput y L . Norman, M r . G .C . Powell, and M r . R .L . Robbins.
I n making its decision to appoint
M iss Alexander, the Board recognised that a l ocal applicant, Mr. V. Bourgoise, had been a close contender for the post and that it
s hould, therefore, be a part of Miss
A lexander's duties to develop someone,
p ossibly Mr. Bourgoise, in order that they
c ould assume the Chief Officer's role at
t he time of the termination of her
c ontract.
M iss Alexander was appointed formally to t he post with effect from 1st November
1 991, for a period of five years.
A t this point, I would want to make
s pecial reference to the terms of the
c ontract that was issued to Miss Alexander a s it has an important bearing on what
s ubsequently transpired. Contrary to the
s tandard contract that is normally issued
t o those who are employed as civil servants b y the States of Jersey (including chief
o fficers), it was decided to vary the terms
o f the contract. Instead of the normal
e ntitlement for both employer and employee t o give notice of termination of contract,
i t was adjusted to allow only Miss
A lexander and not the employer to terminate t he contract by giving three months'
n otice.
S hortly after taking up her post, on
1 6th December 1991, the Establishment
C ommittee made special arrangements to meet with Miss Alexander and indicated its
w illingness to support her and provide any
a dvice that she required.
S ome time later, on 16th September of last y ear, I attended a meeting held between
m yself, my Chief Officer, Mr. Tom Machin, t he President and Vice-President of Sport,
L eisure and Recreation, Miss Alexander and a n officer from the States' Personnel
D epartment, in order to discuss the
u nsatisfactory nature of the restructuring
o f Miss Alexander's department. In
a ddition, the long outstanding issue of the
t ransfer of Mr. Bourgoise (with his
r esponsibilities) from the Education
D epartment to Sport, Leisure and Recreation w as also discussed. The outcome of the
m eeting was some frustration because Miss A lexander appeared unwilling to take advice f rom any other party and was determined to p ush ahead with a new organisation which, i f permitted, would have increased the
s alary bill, notwithstanding the insistence b y her President that this should not
o ccur. It was also recognised that these
d elays were hampering the move of Mr.
B ourgoise to his new post with Sport,
L eisure and Recreation.
F ollowing upon that meeting, I received
f urther complaints about the situation at
F ort Regent and how the States appeared to
b e frustrated by the actions of Miss
A lexander. This included many allegations
t hat she would not listen to advice and
t hat it appeared that she was attempting to
p revent Mr. Bourgoise being accommodated in a revised Sport, Leisure and Recreation
s tructure. This culminated in the
E stablishment and Sport, Leisure and
R ecreation Committees being obliged to
a ppoint one each of their members to
a ttempt to resolve the outstanding issues.
N otwithstanding this, Deputies Crespel and
D u Feu discovered that the approved
d eadlines for carrying out this work were
s till not achieved owing to further delays
o n the part of Miss Alexander. Further, it
h ad come to the attention of the
E stablishment Committee that, despite
s erious lack of progress in resolving the
i ssues attaching to the future organisation
o f her department and the evaluation of the
j obs of her staff, Miss Alexander was
p ursuing the re-evaluation of her own job
a nd was pressing for it to be brought
b efore a Chief Officers' evaluation panel
a s soon as possible. From this it appeared
t o my Committee that she was more concerned a bout improving her own position rather
t han settling those of her staff, who had
b een kept in an uncertain state for many
m onths.
I n addition, it was fairly common
k nowledge throughout the Civil Service that a number of chief officers found it
d ifficult to work with Miss Alexander.
T hus, by the spring of this year, I was
a ware of a number of detrimental comments r eceived from chief officers and
p oliticians, including some senior
p oliticians who were not normally involved i n Sport, Leisure and Recreation matters,
a s to the impact and effectiveness of Miss A lexander, who was already 18 months into h er five-year contract. My own Chief
O fficer was contacted by two senior
S enators over concerns which had been
r eported to them on aspects of her
p erformance.
A s a consequence of these serious concerns a nd with the approval of my Committee, I w rote to the President of Sport, Leisure
a nd Recreation seeking a meeting with him a nd his Vice-President, to discuss (as I
p ut it) matters of general concern'. There w as a delay in response from the President b ut then one morning I received a call
a sking if I would attend a meeting of
S port, Leisure and Recreation, to discuss a s erious matter which that Committee was
c onsidering. I agreed to attend with my
C hief Officer at noon on 13th May.
T he meeting was opened by the President
o f Sport, Leisure and Recreation who
i nformed Mr. Machin and myself that
C ommittee members wished to discuss the p osition of their Chief Officer in whom
t hey had lost confidence. They then
p roceeded to explain that -
( a ) The Committee was being prevented by M is s Alexander's actions and
inact i o ns from going forward to
m eet i t s policy objectives. She
ha d r epeat edly ignored offers of
as si s tance and advice from various
C om m ittee members throughout her tenur e.
( b ) She had ignored requests from
the E duc ation Committee over the
tr an sf e r of functions from that
C om m ittee, pursuing her own stance ins tead.
( c ) She did not acknowledge that the S por t , Leisure and Recreation
C om m ittee determined policy and that i t w as her role to lead her
st af f i n carrying out that policy.
( d ) She had adopted delaying tactics
on t he implementation of the
m ana gem ent structure that
C om m ittee members found difficult to acc ept and she had failed to
take a ny s teps to develop staff,
co ns i s tent with the Committee's
obj ec ti ves for the future.
( e ) The Committee was unable to rely upo n her in terms of the
pr oduct ion of reports and other
requi rem ents and she had proved to be per s onally indisciplined in
be i ng f requently late for at t endan ce at meetings and funct ion s.
( f) Her attitude had persistently
al i enat ed chief officers in other de par t ments.
I was assured by members of the Sport,
L eisure and Recreation Committee that Miss A lexander had been warned on a number of
o ccasions that her performance had fallen
s hort of the proper standard, that she had
f ailed to heed those warnings and that in
t he light of these serious and recurrent
p roblems, Mr. Machin and I were left in no d oubt by the Sport, Leisure and Recreation C ommittee that there was no possibility of M iss Alexander continuing as Chief Officer. I was informed by the President that
u nfortunately Miss Alexander was leaving
t hat afternoon on a fortnight's leave and I
f elt it would be quite wrong to inform her
o f this decision at the 11th hour. I
t herefore instructed Mr. Machin to prepare a letter to go to her residence before her
r eturn requesting her to see Mr. Machin
b efore going to her duties at Fort Regent.
A t the same time as this meeting was
t aking place, consistent with an Act of his C ommittee which was sent to Sport, Leisure a nd Recreation, the Director of Education w rote a letter to Miss Alexander,
c ontaining the most remarkable criticism
a nd one which most starkly illustrates the
t ensions that existed between chief
o fficers and Committees in their dealings
w ith Miss Alexander. This was sent to Miss A lexander on 13th May, the day following h is Committee's deliberations. In that
l etter the Director stated that her delays
i n establishing a new organisation were
p utting in jeopardy the achievements that
h ad been made over a period of years by the E ducation Committee. He continued by
s uggesting that her lack of progress in
c onnexion with the transfer of Mr.
B ourgoise might lead to his departure and
c onsequential disappearance of all
c onfidence, as far as Sport was concerned,
i n the Sport, Leisure and Recreation
C ommittee. Further, he indicated that his
p atience was exhausted and that she must
t ake ultimate responsibility for the
s ituation. The Director of Education
c oncluded his letter by referring to the
f ast ebbing confidence of sports clubs and
s ocieties in the Island'.
O n 1st June Mr. Machin met with Miss
A lexander. (Contrary to what has been put a bout by Miss Alexander I was not present a t that meeting.) Mr. Machin made her fully a ware of the reasons for seeking the
t ermination of her contract which I have
r eferred to previously - again contrary to
w hat has been stated by Miss Alexander and r eported in the media.
T wo options were put to Miss Alexander at that meeting, either the Establishment
C ommittee would seek to terminate her
c ontract or she should resign and suitable
t erms would be negotiated. Subsequent to
t hat meeting, Miss Alexander consulted with t he Chairman of the Chief Officers'
A ssociation, and it was agreed that a
m eeting would be held which would involve m yself, Deputy Crespel, Mr. Machin, Miss A lexander and Mr. Grady. It was arranged
t hat this meeting would be held later on
t hat same morning.
A t that meeting, it was obvious that
M iss Alexander was aware of the provision i n her contract which allowed for
t ermination by herself, but not by the
S tates. I was, therefore, in a position of
b eing unable to terminate the contract by
s erving three months' notice. The only
o ther options that were open to me were
e ither to repudiate the contract on the
g rounds that there had been a total failure
o n her part to perform her duties or to
e nter into negotiation on the terms on
w hich a severance would take place. Whilst i t was clear that the Sport, Leisure and
R ecreation Committee and others were
d issatisfied with Miss Alexander's
p erformance and had lost confidence in her, I considered that the evidence fell short
o f such total failure that would allow me
t o pursue the first of these options. That
b eing so, it was necessary for me to enter
i nto negotiations.
I indicated that I was minded to
s eek termination of her contract, knowing f ull well that this would be rejected. On
b ehalf of Miss Alexander, Mr. Grady
a ttempted to delay the decision to
t erminate Miss Alexander's contract by
s uggesting that we follow a form of
p rocedure set out in the agreement that had b een struck with chief officers. I made it
c lear that this was totally unacceptable
a nd that this matter had to be resolved
q uickly in the public interest, hopefully
w ith the least possible harm to Miss
A lexander. It was at this stage of the
d iscussions that a recess was requested.
A t this point, I would want to make
m embers aware of the fact that the Chief O fficers' Agreement remains silent on the p rocedure for the termination of an
o fficer's contract, as are the Civil
S ervice Administration (General) (Jersey) R ules 1949. Indeed, subsequent to the
A greement having been made, it became
a pparent that the proposal contained within i t to provide for an independent tribunal
t o deal with grievance matters was, in
f act, ultra vires' the Civil Service
( Jersey) Law 1948. The Establishment
C ommittee, at its meeting this month, has a lready considered the flaws in this
A greement and authorised its Chief Officer ( who for professional reasons has never
b een a member of the Chief Officers'
A ssociation) to renegotiate those aspects
o f the agreement which this unfortunate
s aga have highlighted.
B efore we reconvened on 2nd June, there was a joint meeting of the Establishment and
S port, Leisure and Recreation Committees,
w hich agreed that I should reach a
s ettlement with Miss Alexander at a level
w hich I judged to be appropriate.
L ater that morning, Mr Machin and I met
a gain with Mr. Grady and Miss Alexander, D eputy Crespel being unable to attend. I
w as immediately informed that Miss
A lexander had taken legal advice, with the advocate advising her that there was a
prima facie' case for considerable
c ompensation for the remainder of the
c ontract and substantial damages.
I t was then that I made it clear that if
M iss Alexander wished to go to Court then s he was at liberty to do so, but felt it
w as not in the best interests of either
p arty. I suggested again that she should
h ave her contract terminated but that
a greement could be reached whereby she
w ould be permitted to resign for personal
r easons, thereby attempting to avoid public c omment that might be damaging to her. It w as at this stage, early in the meeting,
t hat Mr. Grady indicated on behalf of Miss A lexander that he would want to explore the s econd option.
H e highlighted a number of difficulties w ith which Miss Alexander had had to c ontend since taking up her post. He r eadily acknowledged, and was not
c hallenged by Miss Alexander, contrary to h er subsequent statements, that Miss
A lexander had lost the confidence of her
C ommittee and her colleagues and that she w ould therefore be willing to leave.
D iscussion then moved immediately to the
i ssue of the terms of her departure and I
w as told that 18 months' compensation (the
o pening position) would not be enough; that s he would be looking for at least 2½ years' s alary with other conditions. After some
d iscussion and realising that there was
a pproximately 3½ years to run on the
c ontract, I put forward the sum of two
y ears' salary. At this point Mr. Grady and M iss Alexander withdrew to consider this
o ffer and were away for some time. On their r eturn, Mr. Grady indicated that he
b elieved that we were close to an
a greement, provided that we could agree on a statement about her release.
B efore we were able to agree this,
M iss Alexander then raised the question of h er housing, pleading that as her own home i n the United Kingdom was leased out it
w ould be good for her to have a base from w hich to work. I made it quite clear that
t his was a matter for the Housing Committee t o decide and that it was not in my power
t o agree to such a request. However, I did
s ay that if it would help matters then Mr.
M achin and I would support an application
t o Housing but that the final decision
r ested with that States' Committee. Miss
A lexander at this stage indicated that she was not satisfied with this and asked if
s he could also be allowed to live in her
p resent accommodation rent free - a request t hat I totally rejected. I was also asked
t o meet the removal expenses associated
w ith Miss Alexander's return to the United K ingdom and, as this was a benefit that we e xtend to all contract employees who move t o the Island, I approved this request. On
t he question of references, I stated that
i f she wished to use me as a personal
r eferee in any application for employment,
t hen I would be happy to deal with that
m atter rather than leave it to the
D epartment.
M iss Alexander also signed her
r esignation letter before leaving Mr.
M achin's office. The meeting concluded
a micably with all the participants
a pproving the statement for the media and
t he terms under which Miss Alexander would b e released. These terms were subsequently i ncorporated in a letter to her dated 3rd
J une 1993, confirming her release from her c ontract.
O n 4th June, Miss Alexander again met with M r. Machin, to receive payment of the
a greed two years' salary. However, she
e xpressed concern over future liability to
c ontribute to the Social Security Scheme.
S he left Mr. Machin's office for a half-
h our, to gain further advice on this
m atter, and it was agreed on her return
t hat she would append a statement to the
l etter accompanying the cheque to the
e ffect that no deductions for social
s ecurity payments should be made from the p ayment in question. In acknowledgement of t he receipt of the cheque, she confirmed
t hat it was in full and final settlement'
o f her contract.
I n line with the undertaking that I had
g iven to Miss Alexander, my Chief Officer, M r. Machin, wrote to the Chief Executive O fficer of the Housing Department seeking t he support of the Housing Committee to
a llowing Miss Alexander to remain in the p roperty that was leased to the Sport,
L eisure and Recreation Committee for her
o ccupation. I now understand that this was u nnecessary.
I have to state that Miss Alexander, with
h er representative, fully accepted the
t erms that had been negotiated over a
p eriod of four days from 1st to 4th June
a nd that her actions and statements since
r eceiving payment of the sum in my opinion a re, therefore, highly questionable and
d eliberately misleading. She has, apart
f rom causing considerable further public
e xpense, caused me to expose the well-
i ntentioned acts of colleagues which will
h ave brought them no pleasure and which w ill remain in memory long after she has
d eparted this Island.
I n making this statement, I have attempted t o relate in as objective a way as
p ossible, the circumstances that led up to a nd surrounded Miss Alexander's
r esignation. I think that you will agree
w ith me that the relationship between a
C ommittee and its chief officer, and
b etween chief officer and chief officer is v ital to the smooth and efficient operation
o f our government. What I have recounted a bove shows without any shadow of doubt t hat Miss Alexander had lost the trust and c onfidence both of her Committee and
c ertain of her chief officer colleagues. In t hese circumstances, it was my judgement t hat this trust and confidence could not be r egained and that it was, therefore,
a ppropriate to seek to terminate Miss
A lexander's contract.
W hen these matters were addressed with M iss Alexander and her advisers, it was a pparent that the serious flaw that existed i n her contract inhibited the actions that
I and my Committee could take.
I t is also important to emphasise the
p rotracted nature of these negotiations and t he fact that Miss Alexander was ably
s upported by the Chairman of the Chief
O fficers' Association and took advice from h er advocate. Further, it is apparent from w hat I have already stated that she sought t o gain as good a deal as she possibly
c ould.
I n the light of all that I have recounted
t o you today, it is apparent that this
w hole affair is one that has caused me
g reat sadness and concern. Clearly I take n o pleasure in seeking to terminate a
p erson's contract. However, on occasion it i s necessary and one cannot flinch from
t aking on one's shoulders the
r esponsibility for carrying out such an
o nerous duty. I sought to carry out this
r esponsibility in as fair and reasonable a w ay as possible, given all the
c ircumstances of the case. I believe
p ersonally that I accomplished this.
H aving now set out before you and the
p ublic of this Island, the circumstances
s urrounding Miss Alexander's resignation, I n ow suggest to you all, including Miss
A lexander, that it is time to put this
m atter behind us and seek to look forward
t o the immense challenges that we face in
t he future.
A ppointing someone to a job will never be
a n exact science, although I have
i nstructed the States' Personnel Department t o investigate ways in which we can improve u pon the existing processes. On occasion,
w e will get it wrong and we will appoint
s omeone to a post where that person's
s trengths are not the appropriate ones. We
n eed to recognise this and accept that
a ction will need to be taken to remedy the
s ituation. Having now addressed this in the c ase of the post of Chief Officer of Sport,
L eisure and Recreation and resolved it, we
n eed to move on.''
Public Lotteries Board: appointment of members. P.101/93
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Gambling Control Committee, agreed, in pursuance of Regulation 3(2) of the Gambling (Channel Islands Lottery) (Jersey) Regulations 1975, as amended, to re-appoint the following persons as Chairman and members of the Public Lotteries Board for a period of five years from the date
of re-appointment namely -
M r. Ian Barnes, Chairman M r. John Clennett
M r. Peter Cruickshank
M rs. Mary Gaiger
M r. Colin Hill
M rs. Cynthia Rumboll
M r. Derek Wallis.
Gorseland, La Moye, St. Brelade : purchase
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Island Development Committee -
( a) authorised the purchase on behalf of
t he publ ic of the Island from Advocate
Mi chae l Matthew Godfray Voisin, of the
f reeho ld of 130 vergées of land,
i nc l uding Fields 471A, 471B, 569 and
570, a nd the property known as
G o r seland, La Moye, St. Brelade , as
s how n on drawing No. 389/1 for £410,000 and a uthorised the Greffier of the
S t a tes to sign the said drawing on
beha lf of the States;
( b) authorised the Attorney General and the G r ef fier of the States to pass, on
beha lf of the public, any contracts
w h i ch it might be found necessary to
pas s in connexion with the said
pr op erties and any interest therein;
( c) authorised the payment or discharge of t he expe nses to be incurred in
conne xion with the acquisition of the
s ai d pr operty and of all interest
t he r ein, from the Island Development
C om mittee's vote of credit,
A cqu isition of Land - Major Reserve' V o t e C.0904.
H.M. Prison, La Moye, St. Brelade - workshop
extension: approval of drawings
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Prison Board -
( a) approved drawings Nos. 2940/05 showing t he cons truction of a workshop
ext ens ion within H.M. Prison, La Moye,
S t . B relade;
( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the said drawings on behalf of t he S tates.
Westaway Court, Savile Street, St. Helier - refurbishment: approval of drawings
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Public Health Committee -
( a) approved drawings Nos. 111/2, 3, 4, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 and
S K O1A, showing the external
r ef ur bishment of the existing three
bui ldings and the addition of a new
bl o ck containing a further 12 units of
s taf f accommodation, at Westaway Court, S avi le Street, St. Helier ;
( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the said drawings on behalf of t he S tates.
29/31 Seaton Place, St. Helier : extension of lease
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Public Health Committee -
( a) referred to their Act, dated 31st July
1990, a nd approved the renewal of the
i nt er nal repairing lease from Raleigh
H o us e Limited of three one-bedroomed and o ne three-bedroomed flats at 29/31 S eat on Place, St. Helier , for a period
of t wo years from 6th August 1993 at an annua l rent of £21,264;
( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the necessary lease.
Les Landes School, St. Ouen : purchase of land
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Education Committee -
( a) authorised the purchase on behalf of
t he publ ic from the Trustees of St.
G e or ge's Church, St. Ouen , the freehold w i t h vacant possession of an area of
l and of approximately 1,050 square feet i n F ield 789 (as shown on drawing
N o . 2467/ 99) for £1,050, with the
publ ic being responsible for the
vendo r's legal costs;
( b) authorised the Attorney General and the G r ef fier of the States to pass, on
beha lf of the public, any contract
w h i ch it might be found necessary to
pas s in connexion with the acquisition
of t he said property and any interest
t he r ein;
( c) authorised the payment or discharge of t he expe nses to be incurred in
conne xion with the acquisition of the
s ai d pr operty and of all interests
t he r ein and the payment of all
r ea s onable legal expenses from the
I sl and Development Committee's vote of cr edi t Acquisition of Land - Major
R es erve' Vote C.0904.
Les Landes School, St. Ouen : alterations and extensions
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Education Committee -
( a) approved drawings Nos. 2467:100-106, s how ing internal alterations and
ext ens ions to form three additional
cl as srooms, toilets, stores and link
cor ridor to existing infant block at
L es Landes School, St. Ouen ;
( b) authorised the Greffier of the States t o s ign the said drawings on behalf of t he S tates.
Customary Law (Choses Publiques) (Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed Day) Act 1993. P.95/93
THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 5 of the Customary Law (Choses Publiques) (Jersey) Law 1993, made an Act entitled the Customary Law (Choses Publiques) (Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed Day) Act 1993.
Licensing (No. 7) (Jersey) Regulations 1993. P.68/93 and P.96/93
THE STATES commenced consideration of the draft Licensing (No. 7) (Jersey) Regulations 199 and accepted amendments of the Tourism Committee that, in Regulation 2(c), for the word
suspension'' in paragraph 12(A), there should
be substituted the word surrender'' and, in Regulation 4, after the words Regulations
1993'' there should be added the words and
shall come into force forthwith on
promulgation''.
THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 92 of the Licensing (Jersey) Law 1974, as amended, made Regulations entitled the Licensing (No. 7) (Jersey) Regulations 1993.
Public Health (Control of Building) (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 1993. P.73/93
THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a
Law entitled the Public Health (Control of Building) (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 1993.
Post Office (Amendment) (Jersey) Law 1993. P.81.93
THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a
Law entitled the Post Office (Amendment) (Jersey) Law 1993.
Constitution of the States - Special Committee P.34/93, P.48/93, P.78/93 and P.79/93
THE STATES commenced consideration of a proposition of Senator Corrie Stein that a Special Committee of the States be set up to investigate and report back with detailed proposals on issues specified in the proposition, and decided not to set up the Special Committee.
Members present voted as follows -
P our '' (13) Senators
S henton, Carter, Stein, Quérée. Deputies
R umboll(H), H. Baudains(C), Jordan(B), S. B audains(H), Grouville , Le Geyt(S),
S yvret(H), Crespel(H), Pullin(S).
C ont re'' (33) Senators
J eune, Horsfall, Baal, Rothwell, Le Main, L e Maistre, Quérée.
Connétable s
S t. John, St. Clement , St. Lawrence , St. M ary, St. Ouen , St. Brelade , St. Martin , S t. Peter, Grouville , St. Helier , St.
S aviour, Trinity .
Deputies
L e Gallais(S), Wavell(S), Blampied(H),
N orman(C), St. Peter , St. Ouen ,
H uelin(B), St. Mary , Bailhache (H),
R abet(H), Clarke-Halifax(S), Le Fondré(L), S t. Martin, Trinity .
Change of Presidency
The Bailiff retired from the Chamber and the Sitting continued under the Presidency of Senator Reginald Robert Jeune .
Golf course Les Creux, St. Brelade : construction. P.99/93
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Sport, Leisure and Recreation Committee, referred to their Act dated 9th June 1992, and agreed the proposals for the construction of the first
phase of the proposed 18-hole golf course at Les Creux, St. Brelade , as outlined in the report of
the Sport, Leisure and Recreation Committee, dated 8th July 1993.
Costs in Criminal Cases (Witnesses' Allowances) (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 1993. P.84/93
THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 6 of the Costs in Criminal Cases (Jersey) Law
1961, made Regulations entitled the Costs in Criminal Cases (Witnesses' Allowances) (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Regulations 1993.
Treaty on Open Skies (Privileges and Immunities) (Jersey) Law 1993. P.85/93
THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a Law entitled the Treaty on Open Skies (Privileges
and Immunities) (Jersey) Law 1993. Superintendent Registrar's office: lease of part of 1-3 Church Street, St. Helier . P.89/93
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Island Development Committee -
( a) authorised the lease from the United
C l ub o f 1,945 square feet of the ground f loor of 1-3 Church Street, St. Helier ,
f or a pe riod of 21 years with effect
f rom 1st August 1993, at an annual rent of £ 28,000, subject to review every
t hr ee years, for the purpose of
acc ommodating the office of the
S uper intendent Registrar;
( b) authorised the Attorney General and the G r ef fier of the States to pass the
nece ssary contract;
( c) authorised the payment or discharge of t he expe nses to be incurred in
conne xion with the leasing of the said
pr op erty and all interests therein.
Change of Presidency
The Sitting continued under the Presidency of the Bailiff .
Health Insurance (Conditions for Approval of Medical Practitioners) (Jersey) Regulations 1993. P.90/93
THE STATES, in pursuance of paragraph (1) of Article 35 and Article 46 of the Health Insurance (Jersey) Law 1967, as amended, made Regulations entitled the Health Insurance (Conditions for Approval of Medical Practitioners) (Jersey) Regulations 1993.
Belles Fleurs Nursery, La Rue au Blancq, Grouville : dwelling. P.91/93
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 a dwelling required for a horticulturalist on a site within the Green Zone
at Belles Fleurs Nursery, La Rue au Blancq, Grouville .
Police Force (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed Day) Act 1993. P.93/93
THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 3 of the Police Force (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Law 1993, made an Act entitled the Police Force (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Law 1993 (Appointed Day) Act 1993.
Social Security (Reciprocal Agreement with Canada) (Jersey) Act 1993. P.97/93
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Social Security Committee, made an Act entitled the Social Security (Reciprocal Agreement with Canada) (Jersey) Act 1993.
Grouville Hospital site: transfer of administration of land. P.98/93
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Public Health Committee, approved the transfer of administration from the Public Health Committee to the Telecommunications Board of approximately 165 square metres of land at the Grouville
Hospital site as shown on drawing No. 383/2.
Highbury House, Five Oaks, St. Saviour : acquisition. P.100/93
THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Island Development Committee -
( a) authorised the Committee to negotiate w i t h the owners for the purchase of the pr op erty known as Highbury House, St. S avi our's Hill, St. Saviour , shown on
dr a wing No. 392/1 at a fair and proper
pr ice to be agreed by the Finance and
E conom ics Committee, for housing
deve lopment and authorised the Greffier of t he States to sign the said drawing
on be half of the States;
( b) agreed that, in the event of it not
bei ng pos sible to agree a fair and
pr op er price with the owner of the
pr operty shown on drawing No. 392/1,
t he I sland Development Committee should be e mpowered, in exercise of the powers
conf erred by Article 4 of the Island
P l a nning (Jersey) Law 1964, as amended, t o a cquire the property by compulsory
pur chase in accordance with the
pr ov isions of the Compulsory Purchase
of L and (Procedure) (Jersey) Law 1961,
as a mended;
( c) authorised the payment or discharge of
any e xpenses incurred in connexion with t he acq uisition of the said land from
t he I sland Development Committee's vote of c redit Acquisition of Land - Major R es erve' Vote No. C.0904;.
( d) authorised the Attorney General and the G r ef fier of the States to pass on
beha lf of the public any contract which
i t m ight be necessary to pass in
conne xion with the purchase of the said l and and any interest therein; and
( e) agreed to transfer the property, once acqu ired, to the administration of the H o us ing Committee.
THE STATES rose at 6.23 p.m.
G .H .C . C O P P O C K G r ef fi e r of the States.