States Minutes 13th December 1994

STATES MINUTES 1 3 th D e cember 1994   P ri c e : £ 2 . 2 5

T HE STATES assembled on Tuesday,  13th December 1994 at 9.30 a.m. under t h e Presidency of the Bailiff ,

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

_ _ _ _ _ _ ______

All Members were present with the exception of -

S enator Corrie Stein - ill

S enator Nigel Lewis Quérée - absent

J ack Roche, Connétable of St. Saviour - ill S hirley Margaret Baudains, Deputy of St.

H elier - out of the Island

J ohn Nicolle Le Fondré, Deputy of St.

L awrence - ill

F rank Harris on Walker , Deputy of St. Helier - out of the Island J acqueline Jeannette Huet, Deputy of St.

H elier - out of the Island.

_ _ __________

P r a y e rs

_ _ _ _ _ _ ______

Subordinate legislation tabled

The following enactments were laid before the States, namely -

P ost Office (General Provisions)

( Amendment No. 39) (Jersey) Order 1994. R & O 8764.

M otor Traffic (Experimental Route) ( Designation) (Jersey) Order 1994. R & O 8765.

House Committee - appointment of member

THE STATES appointed Kenneth Priaulx Vibert , Connétable of St. Ouen, as a member of the House

Committee.

Establishment Committee - resignation of member

THE STATES noted the resignation of Carlyle John Le Herissier Hinault, Connétable of St. John,

from the Establishment Committee.

Deputy Industrial Disputes Officer - resignation

THE STATES noted the resignation of Senator Vernon Amy Tomes from the post of Deputy Industrial Disputes Officer.

Establishment Committee - appointment of member

THE STATES appointed Senator Vernon Amy Tomes as a member of the Establishment Committee.

Tourism Committee - resignation of member

THE STATES noted the resignation of Senator Stuart Syvret from the Tourism Committee.

Matters presented

The following matters were presented to the States -

 1 .  Jersey Training Agency: report f o r the year 1994.

P r e sented by the Policy and

R e s ources Committee.

 2 .  Jersey Council for Safety and

H  ea lth at Work: report for the year

e n d ed 30th September 1994 - R.C.27/94.

P r e sented by the Employment and

S o c ial Security Committee. THE STATES

o r d ered that the said report be printed

a n d distributed.

 3 .  International Conventions and

A g reements: progress report for the p e r iod ended 30th September 1994 - R . C .28/94.

P r e sented by the Policy and

R e s ources Committee. THE STATES ordered t h at the said report be printed and

d i st ributed.

 4 .  Longbeach and Puerto Seco,

G  ro uville, development: compensation

c l ai m - R.C.29/94.

P r e sented by the Island

D  ev elopment Committee. THE STATES

o r d ered that the said report be printed

a n d distributed.

Matters lodged

The following subjects were lodged au Greffe'' -

 1 .  Draft Health Insurance

( A m endment No. 8) (Jersey) Law 1994 ( A p pointed Day) Act 199 - P.165/94.

P r e sented by the Employment and

S o c ial Security Committee.

 2 .  States housing rental scheme:

r e vision - P.166/94.

P r e sented by Deputy Alan Breckon

o f S t. Saviour.

3 . Health and social services in J e rs ey - P.167/94.

P r e sented by the Policy and R e s ources Committee.

4 . Disabled Transport Allowance - P . 1 68/94.

P r e sented by the Employment and S o c ial Security Committee.

 5 .  Golf course, Les Creux, St.

B r e lade - P.169/94.

P r e sented by the Sport, Leisure a n d Recreation Committee.

Jersey Airport Limited - questions and answers (Tape No. 265)

Deputy Alastair John Layzell of St. Brelade asked Deputy Leonard Norman of St. Clement, Vice-President of the Harbours and Airport Committee, the following questions -

1.  W ill the President inform the

H o u s e what investigations have b ee n u ndertaken into the

fe a s ib i lity of incorporating Je r s e y Airport Limited''?

 2 .  When will the Harbours and

A  ir port Committee take a decision on w  h ether to proceed with the formation

o f J ersey Airport Limited?

 3 .  What advice has been sought on the

l e ga l standing of those who are

c u r rently employed by the Civil Service b u t might find themselves employed by a p r iv atised airport authority?

The Vice-President of the Harbours and Airport Committee replied as follows -

1.  A t the Policy and Resources

C o m m  ittee meeting of Presidents

an d C h ief Officers in early 1994,

th e p ri ority for the airport

d ev e l o pment at £20 million was

q u es t io ned in the light of the

si z e o f the capital programme. It

w a s s u ggested that the States be

as k e d to fund £10 million of the

d ev e l o pment and that the Harbours an d A i rport Committee should find th e re m aining £10 million. During in v e s ti gations by the Committee it b ec a m e clear that the best way to

se c u r e the £10 million of private

fu n d i n g for the development and

fo r t h e capital requirements of

Je r s e y Airport for many years to

co m e w ould be to form the airport in t o a wholly-owned States'

co m  p a ny. My Committee is

u n d er t aking two investigations at

p re s e n t -

( a ) the preparation of a draft

m e m  o randum and articles of

a s s ociation in conjunction with th e A t torney General, the Chief A d v i se r and the Treasurer of the S ta t e s;

( b ) an examination of all pieces of

av i a ti o n legislation in order that

th e A t torney General may advise my C o m m  ittee of its relationship with

su c h a company and what other

en a b l in g legislation may have to

b e e f fe cted.

 2 .  In consultation with the Policy and

R e sources and the Finance and Economics C o m mittees, my Committee expect to

b r in g recommendations to the States in

t h e New Year on the appropriate way to

p r o ceed in the best interests of the

I s la nd, the airport, the staff and the

t ra v elling public.

 3 .  The advice of the Attorney General has b e e n sought as to the legal standing of

a l l employees (not just civil servants)

a n d when that advice has been received c o n sultations will take place with the

s ta f f associations and unions involved. T h e best interests of all staff at the

a i rp ort will remain one of our highest

p r io rities.''

Drink/driving - questions and answers (Tape No. 265)

Deputy Gary Matthews of St. Brelade asked Deputy Michael Adam Wavell of St. Helier , President of the Defence Committee, the following questions -

1.  W ill the President inform the S ta t e s how many people were

st o p p e d, arrested and prosecuted fo r d r i nk/driving offences in

D e c e m ber 1993 over the festive p er i o d ?

 2 .  Will the President inform the States

w  h at are his Committee's plans for

w  ar ning people against drinking and

d r iv ing this Christmas/New Year period?

 3 .  Would the President agree that there is n o safe limit regarding drinking and

d r iv ing?''

The President of the Defence Committee replied as follows -

1.  D uring the period between 1st

D e c e m ber 1993, and the end of the fi rs t w  eek in January 1994, some

1 4 6 p e ople were breath tested, of

w h i ch 61 were arrested and

su b s e q uently 54 were charged.

W  h ile the question focuses upon

d r in king and driving during the festive s e a son, I emphasise that this is a

p r o blem which afflicts the Island

t h ro ughout the year and, as an

i ll u stration of the extent of the

p r o blem, I would point out that during t h e first 11 months of 1994, a total of 4 0 3 people were arrested under the

r e le vant legislation.

H  o wever, I must emphasise that policing i s a last resort. People must behave in

a r e sponsible manner and consider the

d i re consequences of drinking and

d r iv ing such as the side effects on the

f a m ily, loss of a job, misery and

s u f fering to injured people.

2 . During the festive season, the Defence C o m mittee will be promoting a range of m ea sures which are intended to

h i g hlight the problems of drinking and

d r iv ing and to act as a deterrent.

A  s part of their year-round campaign, t h e Road Safety Panel has undertaken s te r ling work in educating the public a n d in producing publicity material

w  h ich will be widely distributed. A

w  re cked vehicle which only last week c o s t the life of a young man will be

d i sp layed at prominent locations, to

d e m onstrate the dangers and

c o n sequences of drinking and driving.

A  d ditionally, it is envisaged that both

t h e States and Honorary Police will be u n d ertaking co-ordinated road checks

t h ro ughout the Island, which will be

a i m ed at deterring people from drinking a n d driving.

 3 .  Research clearly demonstrates that even l o w amounts of alcohol can increase the r is k of accident involvement; however,

t h e question of an appropriate legal

l im  it remains a source of considerable

a c a demic and political debate

t h ro ughout the world.

N  o twithstanding the existence of a

l e ga l limit, the best advice which I

a n d the Defence Committee can offer at t h is time is - don't drink and drive.''

Resignation from the Tourism Committee. Statement by Senator S. Syvret

Senator Stuart Syvret made a personal statement in the following terms -

  It is with much regret that I must inform  t he House of my resignation from the

 T ourism Committee. It was not a decision  t aken lightly and now I feel that the

 S tates and the people of Jersey deserve an  e xplanation.

A s Members are, no doubt, aware events h ave reached this unfortunate stage as a

r esult of a disagreement within the Arts T rust. Before I continue I feel I should,

i n order to avoid confusion, point out that t he Arts Trust and The Jersey Arts Centre a re two distinct organisations, and I make n o criticism of the Jersey Arts Centre, the m anagement and staff of which I have

n othing but the greatest respect for.

T he disagreement concerns three issues -

( 1 ) the efficiency of the T ru s t a dministration;

( 2 ) the awarding of a seven per cent p ay r is e to the administration;

( 3 ) the creation of the new post

o f assistant administrator at a

co s t o f £14,000 per annum and the m a n n e r in which this post was to

b e f il le d.

I had begun to be concerned with the

p erformance of the cost of Trust

a dministration because I could see no

e vidence that a number of the core tasks of t he Trust had been achieved, in particular t he following -

t h e production of a calender of A  rt s events.

t h e creation of a database of

A  rt s organisations and facilities;

t h e production and distribution of

a l e aflet explaining and encouraging a p p lications for grants.

T his last point is of particular concern g iven that the Trust's constitution

r equires it to provide grants to

i ndividuals and organisations active in the a rts. It can hardly be a satisfactory state

o f affairs when, with the exception of the

r egular substantial grants given to such

l arge undertakings as the Arts Centre etc.,

t he Trust has disbursed more money in staff c osts than it has in grants.

I was further alarmed when I discovered

t hat the chairman and the treasurer had

d ecided that the administrator should be

a warded a seven per cent pay rise. I

b elieve the administrators salary to now be i n excess of £23,000 per annum. The

t rustees were informed of the proposed rise u nder any other business so no detailed

d iscussion took place. I only learnt of the excessive nature of this award after some w eeks had passed.

P erhaps of the greatest concern to me was

t he manner in which the chairman, in

c onjunction with the administrator, sought

t o create a new post. On several occasions

t he administrator approached a trustee

s eeking his support for the appointment of

a n assistant administrator. He refused,

i nstead explaining that there was an

a ccepted procedure that should be followed

b efore such an appointment could be made. D issatisfied with this response the

a dministrator sought the support of the

c hairman. The result was the attached

l etter of 14th November which was handed to m e by the administrator on the evening of

M onday 14th with the verbal instruction to

r espond by the following morning.

T o say that I was shocked by the content of t he letter would be an understatement. In

i t the trustees are asked to make an

i mportant decision involving the

e xpenditure of £14,000 of Trust funds with

o nly 12 hours notice and no discussion.

T his is doubly bad when one considers the f ollowing points -

T h e current operation of the

T r u st administration clearly required e x a mination.

N  o attempt had been made to produce a n y evidence that a new post was even n e c essary.

N  o job description had been

p r o duced. (There is little point in

t a ki ng on a new employee before you h ave clearly identified what that

p e r son is going to be doing).

E ven if all these stages had been gone

t hrough the post should then have been

a dvertised and interviews held. There are

m any able and enthusiastic people in Jersey w ho would love such a job but had thus been d enied the opportunity to apply. Whilst it

m ight be acceptable for a private company

t o act in this way I would respectfully

s uggest that a public body such as the Arts T rust should be fairer by offering such

o pportunities to the public at large.

U nfortunately I must also point out that t he person named in the letter as a

s uitable assistant administrator is a close p ersonal friend of the current

a dministrator.

T he morning after receiving this letter

I telephoned the chairman of the Trust and

e xpressed such serious misgivings and

r equested an emergency meeting of the

T rust. That meeting took place on the

e vening of 22nd November. All of the above c oncerns were discussed for some time with m yself and another trustee arguing that the T rust needed to seriously examine its

a dministration. The majority of the

t rustees gave the appearance of not being

p repared to consider these issues and

i nstead became angry that such criticisms

s hould be made. It was at this point I

d escribed the attached letter of 14th

N ovember, which was signed by the

a dministrator and sent out in the

chairman's name, as grossly incompetent,

f or the reasons outlined above. The

c hairman and treasurer then announced their r esignation. However, instead of doing this

t hey and some of the other trustees set

a bout seeking the removal of my fellow

t rustee and me, as can be seen from the

a ttached letter of 1st December to Senator

S henton. I, believing my concerns to be

j ustified, resisted such efforts and, along

w ith Senator Shenton sought to heal the

r ift in the Trust. However, the other

t rustees were totally inflexible in their

d esire to arrange my removal from the

T rust. The matter came to a head last

F riday afternoon at an emergency meeting of t he Tourism Committee which I requested. At t hat meeting I put my case in the hope that

t he Committee would support me and thus

p ersuade the other trustees to adopt a more

r easonable attitude. However the vote went

a gainst me and I was left with no choice

o ther than to tend my resignation.

I f anything positive is to come out of this s ad episode I hope it will be a recognition t hat the rôle of the arts in society is of

g reater relevance than that of a socially

f ashionable hobby; and that an important s tep towards actively fostering an

a ppreciation of, and participation in the

a rts, would be to combat the impression

t hat is sometimes given that the art world i s dominated by elitist cliques.

S ir, I am extremely angry at this

s ituation. Over 14,000 people voted for me b ecause, I believe, they regard me as

t rustworthy. It is to them my first duty

l ies. I, for simply honouring their trust

a nd seeking to do my public duty, have been m ade a scapegoat. I could not, in all

c onscience, turn a blind eye to such

i nadequacies in the way the Trust was

f unctioning. I am aware that trusts are

i ndependent bodies and as such are not

b ound by States policies. But I would suggest that a public trust, such as the

A rts Trust, which has a great deal of tax

p ayers money entrusted to it, should

o perate with the upmost professionalism.

I am disappointed to have to leave the

T ourism Committee and consequently, the A rts and Heritage Trusts. I felt I was

p laying a useful rôle within these

o rganisations but I had to do what I felt

t o be right. No doubt certain people will

n ow set out to vilify me because of any

i nconvenience this may cause but my

c onscience is clear. Article 17 of the

T rusts (Jersey) Law 1984, which relates to t he duties of trustees, states that a

t rustee shall act -

( i) with due diligence; and

( ii ) as would a prudent person.

O thers can say what they will about

t his episode. I know I have done my public d uty.

I am aware that this chain of events will

n ot make me popular in certain quarters.

B ut I reject any attempt to blame me or my f ellow trustee for this situation, for the

b lame lies elsewhere; older and, supposedly w iser people than me should be reflecting

u pon that fact instead of simply seeking to s hoot the messenger.''

Letter from Chairman, Jersey Arts Trust -

  14th November 1994  D ear Stuart,

I have spoken to some of you on the

t elephone recently and had already formed

t he impression that Sarah, who had been

w ith us for over a year, needs help. This

h as become more urgent when Rod wants to h and back to Sarah all the Festivals and

S treet Theatre, that his staff have been

h andling at the Arts Centre, other than the

J ersey International Festival. I think this

i s because the International Arts Festival

i s a very hot potato'. Its success is

e ssential. He has asked if he can take

S arah Johnson exclusively to help him for

t he International Arts Festival. If (as we

h ope) Friday clinches the Opera House, then n ext year will be busier than this year.

S arah has found someone with whom she could w ork. Her name is Caroline Tomlinson and

a photocopy of her CV is attached. I have

i nterviewed Caroline with Sarah and taken

u p some references informally. I have no

d oubt that she will fit the bill admirably.

S he is at present working at the Planning

O ffice and if we agreed, could start work

a t the beginning of December. She requires

a salary of £14,000 p.a. and I have told

h er that, if we employ her, it will be on a

s trictly trial period (initially) of six

m onths. I have spoken at some length with

o ur Treasurer this morning and we are both

h appy to proceed, subject to the Trustees'

a pproval. Will you please, on receipt of

t his letter, telephone Sarah on 617521 and

s ay yes or no. A yes vote is recommended.

Y ours sincerely,

S .E. Clarehugh

p .p. Francis Hamon C hairman''.

Letter from certain members of the Arts Trust - Dear Senator Shenton,

W e, the undersigned members of the Jersey A rts Trust, have decided that the presence

o f Senator Syvret is no longer acceptable

t o us or to the way the Trust has operated

t o this date.

I f the business of the Trust is to be

c onducted in the openly supportive way to

w hich we have been accustomed, we would ask y ou to replace him on the Committee of

F idei-commis, by another nominee, say,

S enator Jean Le Maistre. However, if he is

t o remain, then we will sadly be forced to

r esign en bloc.

W e understand that the chairman and

t reasurer are in agreement with this letter a nd are willing to withdraw their

r esignations if you can arrange for the

r emoval of Senator Syvret.

( c.f. letter attached from George Loraine e xplaining the circumstances of his

r esignation)

T his is a matter of great urgency, and we b elieve it would not have come to this

p oint had it not been for the behaviour and l ack of trust shown by Senator Syvret.

W e hope that the matter can be settled

b efore the next meeting of the Trust which w e have convened specially for Tuesday, D ecember 6th.

Y ours sincerely,

 S igned Michael Munz-Jones P h il ip Le Brocq.''

Longbeach and Puerto Seco, Grouville - statement by the Finance and Economics Committee

The President of the Finance and Economics Committee made a statement in the following terms -

  Following the answers given by the

 P resident of the Island Development

 C ommittee to questions raised by Senator  S henton on the Longbeach development, I  i nformed the House that the Finance and

 E conomics Committee would conduct a

 t horough investigation into the

 c ircumstances surrounding the payment of

£ 200,000 in full and final settlement of

 t he developers claim.

M y Committee has concluded its

i nvestigation, and now wishes the full

f acts to be communicated to the House. Before doing so, I wish first of all to

a ddress Senator Shenton's complaint that

n either the Supply Day Report, nor anything s aid in the House, told him that he was

w asting his time lodging the report since

t he money had actually been paid.

I nvestigation has revealed that the Supply

D ay Report, agreed by the Island

D evelopment Committee on 1st September 1 994, and forwarded to the Treasury for

i nclusion in the Supply Day booklet,

i ncluded a reference to payment having been m ade, but that this was omitted from the

r eport presented to the Finance and

E conomics Committee, and subsequently

i ncluded in the Supply Day booklet. For

t his erroneous omission, and the confusion w hich has subsequently arisen from it,

i ncluding my own impression that the money h ad yet to actually be paid over to the

c laimants, my Committee and I can only

o ffer our unreserved apologies to the

H ouse. You may rest assured that steps have a lready been taken to ensure that future

S upply Day reports will make quite clear

w hether payment has already occurred.

I am also concerned that the wording of the

S upply Day report, the President of the

I sland Development Committee's answer, and, i ndeed, my own comment that I was unaware t hat payment had been made, have led this

H ouse, the media, and the general public of

t he Island to believe that the Solicitor

G eneral and the Controller of Audit were

a cting without authority in this matter.

A s the following sequence of events shows, t his was clearly not the case -

O  n 17th December 1993, both the

S o l icitor General and the Controller of

A  u dit attended a meeting of the Finance a n d Economics Committee. It was

e x p lained that whilst some £363,000 had b e e n made in interim payments on agreed p a r ts of the compensation claim, a

t o ta l of £502,500 remained in dispute,

a n d that, in the absence of agreement,

t h e Island Planning (Jersey) Law 1964

c o n tained provision for arbitration.

T h e officers had received advice from

c o u nsel that the outcome of arbitration

w  as uncertain, costs for each side

w o uld approach £100,000, and he valued t h e uncertainty at £100,000. A sum of

£4 0 ,000 in fees was also being claimed w h ich was not disputed in principle. My C o m mittee decided to authorise the

o f fe r of a figure in full and final

s e tt lement in a sum up to £150,000. The e x a ct figure was to be the subject of

a g r eement between the officers advising t h e Island Development Committee.

T h e Island Development Committee met

o n 13th January 1994, and the Committee A ct records that the Island Development C o m mittee agreed to the Finance and

E c o nomics Committee's recommendation t h at up to £150,000 be offered as final

p a y ment. The Committee instructed its

C h i ef Executive Officer that the claim

f o r additional fees be the subject of

d e ta iled scrutiny.

T h e Island Development Committee's C h i ef Executive Officer, the

S o l icitor General and the Controller of A  u dit met on 25th January 1994 to

d i sc uss the final figure, and on 31st

J a n uary 1994, the Solicitor-General

w  ro te to the developer's advocate

o f fe ring the sum of £100,000 in full

a n d final settlement of the claim,

t o g ether with an acceptance of

l ia b ility in principle for fees to the

e x te nt that they were -

( a ) attributable to the modification an d ;

( b ) reasonable.

O n 6th May 1994, the claimants offered t o a ccept £225,000 in full and final

s e tt lement of the claim (by implication

r e je cting the offer made on 31st

J a n uary 1994). The Finance and

E c onomics Committee was notified by the C o n troller of Audit of the receipt of

t h is counter-offer at its meeting on

2 7 t h June 1994. The Act records that

t h e Committee, having concurred with

t h e advice of the Solicitor-General

t h at it would be desirable to avoid a

p o t entially prolonged and costly

a r b itration, agreed that it would be

d e s irable to settle the matter without

d e la y. The Committee noted that the

o fficers involved in the negotiations

w  er e to meet on 28th June 1994, in

o r d er to consider the situation and to

a d v ise the Island Development

C o m mittee. The Committee authorised

t h at , in the event that the Island

D  ev elopment Committee were to be

a d v ised to increase the final offer, an

i n cr eased offer of up to a maximum sum

o f £ 175,000 could be made. In the event

t h at the developer would only be

p r e pared to accept an amount in excess

o f t his, the Committee agreed that it

w  o uld be prepared to meet at short

n o t ice.

T h e Island Development Committee met

o n 30th June 1994. The Act records that

t h e Committee, having considered the

a d v ice of the Solicitor General, and

t h e decision of the Finance and

E c o nomics Committee to seek a

s e tt lement to avoid arbitration

p r o ceedings, authorised its Chief

E x e cutive Officer to discuss and agree

w  it h the Attorney General a recommended s e tt lement to avoid expensive

a r b itration proceedings. That

r e co mmendation was not to exceed

£2 2 5,000 including fees and all other

c l ai ms.

O  n 13th July 1994, the Solicitor

G  en eral wrote to the developer's

a d v ocate offering £175,000, being the F i n ance and Economics Committee's c e il ing of the amount which could be

o f fe red at officer level. The response w  as a without prejudice offer to settle f o r £200,000, on the proviso that this w  as not subject to any further

n e g otiation.

O  n 22nd July 1994 the Solicitor General w  ro te to the Controller of Audit

r e q uesting that the Finance and

E c o nomics Committee meet to consider a u th orising this offer. This letter

r e fe rred to the fact that the Island

D ev elopment Committee had agreed to a s e tt lement not to exceed £225,000, and

t h at on this basis the Solicitor

G  en eral did not think that further

a u th orisation was required from the

I s la nd Development Committee. The

l e tt er was copied to the Chief

E x e cutive Officer of the Island

D  ev elopment Committee for information.

T h e Finance and Economics Committee met

o n 28th July 1994. The Act records -

T h e C ommittee, wishing to avoid a p o te n t ially prolonged and costly

ar b i tr a tion, and recalling that

th e Is l and Development Committee h ad a g reed to a settlement not

ex c e e d ing £225,000 including all

fe e s a n d other claims, accordingly

au t h o r ised the offer of £200,000

w i th o u t prejudice and in full and

fi n a l s ettlement of all claims

re g a r d ing Longbeach, Grouville .

T h e C  ontroller of Audit was

au t h o r ised to take the necessary ac t io n . '

T h e Solicitor General was informed of

t h e Committee's decision and a written

o f fe r made to the developer's advocate.

T h e offer was accepted on 29th July

1 9 9 4. A cheque was drawn by the

C o n troller of Audit, forwarded to the

S o l icitor General, and delivered to the

d e v eloper's advocate in exchange for a

s ig n ed discharge in respect of the

c o m pensation claim. On the same day,

2 9 t h July 1994, the Solicitor General

w  ro te to the Controller of Audit and

t h e Chief Executive Officer of the

I s la nd Development Committee informing t h em that the cheque had been paid over

t o t he developer's advocate in exchange

f o r a signed discharge acknowledging

f u ll and final settlement of the

c o m pensation claim which was also

e n c losed with the Solicitor General's

l e tt er.

O  n 12th August 1994, the Island

D ev elopment Committee noted a report f ro m its Chief Executive Officer

s ta t ing that the claim had been settled

a t £ 200,000, bringing the total amount p a id to settle the claim to £563,000.

T h e report noted that the

S o l icitor General, the Controller of

A  u dit and the Chief Executive Officer a l l agreed with this figure, and that

t h e Treasurer of the States had already p a id this amount at the request of the

S o l icitor General.

T h e Island Development Committee again m  et on 1st September 1994. The Act

r e co rds -

T h e C ommittee recalled that it

h ad d e cided that a settlement

sh o u l d not exceed £225,000

in c l u d ing fees and all other

cl a im  s , and that a settlement of

£2 0 0 ,0 00 had been successfully

n eg o t i ated in full and final

se t tl e m ent of the claim in

ac c o r d ance with the Committee's

w i sh e s , and which was reported to

th e C o mmittee on 12th August 1994. T h e C  ommittee endorsed the action ta k e n b y the States' Treasury at

th e re q uest of the

S o li c it or General in settling this

am  o u n t.

T h e C  ommittee decided to seek a

S u p p ly Day request in the sum of

£2 0 0 ,0 00 to enable those monies to b e t ra n sferred to vote No. 5207 -

L e g a l Claims Contingency, in order to m e e t that claim.'

T h a t concludes a summary of events as t h ey occurred.

I s h ould now like to turn to the merits

o f t his matter, as it has been

s u g gested that the settlement was not a n a ppropriate one to reach. It is

w  o rth recalling that, once the States p e r suaded the Island Development

C o m mittee to reverse its original

d e c ision, a statutory right to

c o m pensation on the part of the

d e v eloper arose. There can be no

d i sp ute as to the liability of the

S t a tes to pay, but only as to the

a m o unt which was payable. The House was t o ld of this fact at the time, and I

r e ca ll making my own warning of the

p o t ential costs involved.

T h e claim was some £906,000 whereas t h e final payments totalled some

£5 6 3,000. This represents only 60 per

c e n t of the claim, or put another way, th e Officers who worked on the claim

h a v e saved the public £343,000. Having r e g ard to the professional advice

r e ce ived, and the potential costs of an

a r b itration, it is the opinion of the

F i n ance and Economics Committee that t h e settlement reached was entirely

r e as onable and proper given the initial d e c ision of the States which gave rise

t o t he legal liability to pay

c o m pensation in the first place, and I

t hink the House should congratulate the

o f fi cers for their efforts in this

m  at ter.

N  o w, I return to the question of

w  h ether the Solicitor General and the

C o n troller of Audit were acting

t h ro ughout this matter with all

n e c essary authority. It is quite clear

t o t he Finance and Economics Committee t h at both officers not only acted with

t h e proper authority, but took all the

n e c essary steps throughout the

n egotiations to ensure that the

a u th ority was properly obtained. Their

a c ti ons are beyond reproach and any

s u g gestion that may have been made

o t h erwise is totally without

f o u ndation.

F i n ally, the Finance and

E c o nomics Committee is at present

c o n ducting a review of the Finance Law. I h a ve asked, as a result of these

i n v estigations, that the review

a d d resses situations such as this, and

o t h er examples are court costs and

c o n tractual claims, where a legal

l ia b ility to pay arises. I do not feel

t h at the Law as it stands provides

a d e quately for such legal liabilities,

a n d I hope to ask the House to consider p r o posals on this matter in the near

f u tu re.

A f ull report on the Longbeach

c o m pensation claim is to follow from

t h e Island Development Committee. The H  o use will have the opportunity to

c o n sider this, together with the

o u t standing Supply Day request, early

i n t he next session.''

Longbeach and Puerto Seco, Grouville - statement by the Island Development Committee

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

  My Committee will today provide Members

o f the States with a detailed report,

 f ollowing my answers to Senator Shenton's

 q uestions on 22nd November 1994. The report  p rovides the background and circumstances

 on the compensation claim which my

 C ommittee inherited from the previously-

 c onstituted Committee. It also explains

 f ully how my Committee has dealt with the

m atter since we were appointed in December

 1 993. We have tried to answer the very many  s upplementary questions which were

 u nanswered on 22nd November 1994, both on  p oints of detail and of principle. I

 b elieve it is important that Members have

 t ime to consider this report and have the

o pportunity to seek additional information

 f rom the Department should they require it.

I t is also my intention to ask the

P resident of the Finance and Economics

C ommittee for an opportunity to debate our S upply Day request at a later date.

I must, however, today deal with

o ne important aspect of my Committee's

r eport. My answers to the questions of the

2 2nd November 1994, combined with the

r esponse of the President of the Finance

a nd Economics Committee and the numerous s upplementary questions which followed,

c reated the impression that this settlement

h ad been arrived at by the Solicitor

G eneral, entirely without authorisation by

m y Committee. The answers which I gave on 2 2nd November were drafted in a very short t imescale, and have proved to be

i nsufficient and have led to

m isrepresentation. The impression given was n ot correct and my Committee's full report t oday is intended to put the record s traight.

I would like to express my sincere apology t o the Solicitor General and to the House

f or any embarrassment this may have

c aused.''

Commissioners of Appeal for Income Tax: appointment

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Finance and Economics Committee -

 ( a) approved the appointment as a

C o m missioner of Appeal for Income Tax, f o r a three year period commencing 1st

J a n uary 1995, of Mrs. Catherine

E l iz abeth Rees; and

 ( b) approved the re-appointment as

C o m missioners of Appeal for Income Tax, f o r a period of three years commencing

1 s t January 1995, of -

M r . H a rry Wookey Hall

M r . A n thony John Cooper Paines M r . A r thur Stanley Le Ruez

M r . J a mes Shaw.

Limited Partnerships (Jersey) Law 1994 (Appointed Day) Act 1994

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 42 of the Limited Partnerships (Jersey) Law 1994, made an Act entitled the Limited Partnerships (Jersey) Law 1994 (Appointed Day) Act 1994.

Sport, leisure and recreation premises: transfer of administration - P.170/94

THE STATES commenced consideration of a proposition of the Education Committee to approve the transfer of administration of sport, leisure and recreation premises from that Committee to the Sport, Leisure and Recreation Committee. After discussion, and on the proposition of Deputy Imogen Stephanie Nicholls of Grouville , the proposition was lodged au Greffe''.

Adoption (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Law

199 - P.150/94

THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a Law entitled the Adoption (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Law 199 .

Public Service Vehicles (Fees) (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Regulations 1994 - P.152/94

THE STATES, in pursuance of Articles 49A and 54 of the Motor Traffic (Jersey) Law 1935, as amended, made Regulations entitled the Public Service Vehicles (Fees) (Amendment No. 5) (Jersey) Regulations 1994.

Family Allowances (Jersey) Regulations 1994 - P.154/94

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 7 of the Family Allowances (Jersey) Law 1972, as amended, made Regulations entitled the Family Allowances (Jersey) Regulations 1994.

Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme: further amendment - P.156/94

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Defence Committee, made an Act amending further the Act of the States dated the 4th day of December 1990, establishing a Scheme to provide compensation for victims of crimes of violence.

Loi (199 ) (Amendement) sur la Voirie - P.157/94

THE STATES, having accepted an amendment of Deputy Dereck André Carter of St. Helier that

in Article 7 for the words le deliquant sera passible d''' there should be substitued the

words il pourra infliger sur le délinquant'',

and subject to the sanction of Her Most

Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a Law entitled the Loi (199 ) (Amendement) sur la Voirie.

Powers of Attorney (Jersey) Law 199 - P.159/94

THE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, adopted a Law entitled the Powers of Attorney (Jersey) Law

199 .

Licensing (No. 9) (Jersey) Regulations 1994 - P.160/94

THE STATES, in pursuance of Article 92 of the Licensing (Jersey) Law 1974, as amended, made Regulations entitled the Licensing (No. 9) (Jersey) Regulations 1994.

States of Jersey Airport: operation of jet aircraft - P.161/94

THE STATES, adopting a proposition of the Harbours and Airport Committee -

 ( 1) referred to their Acts dated 19th

N  o vember 1969, 27th September 1988 and 3 1 s t March 1992, and agreed to

s u b stitute for paragraph (1) the

f o ll owing paragraph -

( 1 )  agreed that there should be no

o p er a t io n of jet aircraft into

an d o u t o f Jersey Airport

b et w  ee n 22.30 hours and 07.30 h o u rs lo c al time except -

(a ) i n e xtenuating circumstances;

(b ) j e t aircraft which meet the