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STATES OF JERSEY ORDER PAPER
Tuesday 24th February 2015
- COMMUNICATIONS BY THE PRESIDING OFFICER
- TABLING OF SUBORDINATE ENACTMENTS (Explanatory note attached)
- DOCUMENTS PRESENTED OR LAID
Housing Repairs and Maintenance. R.9/2015. Presented: 5th February 2015.
Comptroller and Auditor General.
Land Transactions under Standing Order 168(3) – R.10/2015.
flying freehold ownership and cancellation of existing 99 year lease;
flying freehold ownership and cancellation of existing 99 year lease.
Minister for Treasury and Resources.
Presented: 10th February 2015.
Minister for Economic Development.
Presented: 11th February 2015.
Minister for Treasury and Resources.
Presented: 12th February 2015.
External Relations: Report for the period September 2013 to January 2015. R.15/2015. Presented: 19th February 2015.
Minister for External Relations.
States Investment Strategies. R.16/2015. Presented: 19th February 2015.
Minister for Treasury and Resources.
Land Transactions under Standing Order 168(3) – Grouville Primary School – R.17/2015. acquisition of land.
Presented: 20th February 2015.
Minister for Treasury and Resources.
States Members' Remuneration Review Body: appointment of members. R.18/2015. Presented: 20th February 2015.
Privileges and Procedures Committee.
- NOTIFICATION OF LODGED PROPOSITIONS
Draft Planning and Building (Amendment of Law) (Jersey) Regulations 201- P.2/2015. (P.2/2015): amendment. Amd. Lodged: 9th February 2015.
Minister for Planning and Environment.
Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme: revised Scheme. P.13/2015. Lodged: 5th February 2015.
Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier .
Minister for External Relations.
Draft Financial Services Ombudsman (Jersey) Law 2014 (Appointed Day) (No. 2) P.17/2015. Act 201-.
Minister for Economic Development.
Gas Tariffs: reduction. P.18/2015. Lodged: 17th February 2015.
Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier .
Draft Shipping (Fishing Vessels Safety Codes of Practice) (Jersey) Regulations P.19/2015. 201-.
Minister for Economic Development.
- WITHDRAWAL OF LODGED PROPOSITIONS
- APPOINTMENT OF MINISTERS, COMMITTEES AND PANELS
- MATTERS OF PRIVILEGE
- PETITIONS
- QUESTIONS
- – Written Questions(attached)
- The Minister for Treasury and Resources will table an answer to a question asked by the Deputy of Grouville regarding the cost of reports relating to Property Tax.
- The Minister for Home Affairs will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy L.M.C. Doublet of St. Saviour regarding statistics relating to violent crimes against women.
- The Minister for Health and Social Services will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy L.M.C. Doublet of St. Saviour regarding permanent and agency nurses.
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier regarding enforcement action.
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier regarding the development of Esplanade Quarter.
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier regarding the number of people actively seeking work who opt for self- employment.
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier regarding the funding of the Committee of Inquiry into Historic Child Abuse.
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier regarding a public register of beneficial ownership.
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier regarding anti-money laundering regulations.
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier regarding links between HSBC Switzerland and Jersey.
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier regarding the European Union Savings Tax Directive.
- The Minister for Economic Development will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier regarding Visit Jersey.
- The Minister for Housing will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier regarding tenants' rights of appeal.
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade regarding tax avoidance measures.
- The Minister for Housing will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade regarding the percentage of household income spent on rent.
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy
- Tadier of St. Brelade regarding CO2 emissions.
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy
- Tadier of St. Brelade regarding the use of dilapidated and empty buildings.
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade regarding reductions in income support rental components due to under occupation.
- The Minister for Home Affairs will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier regarding investigations at Haut de la Garenne in 2008.
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier regarding the Health Insurance Fund.
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier regarding the use of loans for special payments to Income Support claimants.
- – Oral Questions (120 minutes)
- The Deputy of Grouville will ask the following question of the Minister for Home Affairs –
"What progress, if any, are the police making to enable them to target and bring to justice perpetrators of cyber crimes committed from domains and servers hosted in other countries?"
- Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Treasury and Resources –
"Following the publication in January 2015 of the Fiscal Policy Panel's pre-Medium Term Financial Plan Report, will the Minister advise members what his main challenges are and his priorities?"
- Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Social Security –
"What target, if any, does the Social Security Department have for the time taken to deal with appeals against sanctions imposed for failure to actively seek work?"
- Deputy J.A. Hilton of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Treasury and Resources –
"Can the Minister, as shareholder representative of the States of Jersey Development Company, inform members whether discussions have taken place between any Minister, S.O.J.D.C. and government departments or quangos with a view to signing a pre-let agreement for the Esplanade car park site and can the Minister confirm that any agreement will be in line with what was agreed by the States Assembly in 2008?"
- Deputy G.J. Truscott of St. Brelade will ask the following question of the Chief Minister –
"Following suggestions by the U.K. Leader of the Opposition that he would request the O.E. C.D . to blacklist Jersey should the Island fail to implement a public register of corporate beneficial ownership within six months of a Labour government, does the Chief Minister agree with the U.K. Financial Secretary that the logical conclusion would accordingly be the blacklisting of 32 out of 34 O.E. C.D . member countries, including Germany and the U.S.?"
- Deputy P.D. McLinton of St. Saviour will ask the following question of the Minister for Transport and Technical Services –
"Drawing the Minister's attention to the Planning and Building (Display of Advertisements) (Jersey) Order 2006, Paragraph 8, "Conditions attached to the grant of permission to display an advertisement", could the Minister inform members to what degree the conditions could be "open to interpretation" by TTS officers?"
- Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Social Security –
"Would the Minister be prepared to consider raising the cap on Social Security contributions for high earners to ensure that the department is able to continue to meet the cost of G.P. subsidies in the event of a surge in visits?"
- The Connétable of St. Mary will ask the following question of the Chief Minister –
"Could the Chief Minister confirm what actions have been taken by the Jersey government to ensure that the U.K. Opposition are fully aware of Jersey's position on the transparency agenda and, specifically, the provision of beneficial ownership information?"
- Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Home Affairs –
"Will the Minister make a statement to the Assembly setting out the full facts of the two recent incidents involving armed police in the Island and, if not, why not; and will she also state whether the officers concerned acted correctly and proportionately and what lessons, if any, have been learnt from the incidents?"
- Deputy J.A. Hilton of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Social Security –
"Can the Minister confirm whether a legally binding repayment plan been put in place following the case heard in the Royal Court on 6th February 2015 where a couple was sentenced for withholding material information from the Social Security Department contrary to Article 16(a) of the Income Support (Jersey) Law 2007, and aiding and abetting the commission of that offence, defrauding the Department of £50,000?"
- Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Treasury and Resources –
"Following reports that the company CH2M Hill is incurring a substantial loss on the Gigabit project, what investigations has the Minister, as shareholder representative of JT Global, made to ensure that these losses are not the cause of the current dispute with the Gigabit project workers?"
- Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier will ask the following question of the Minister for Transport and Technical Services –
"Will the Minister give members details of the ridership of the bus service including the numbers using pre-paid cards and an estimate of the overall changes to bus fares over 2014 and 2015?"
- – Questions to Ministers without notice (30 minutes) –
1st question period – Minister for Social Security
2nd question period – Chief Minister
- PERSONAL STATEMENTS
- STATEMENTS ON A MATTER OF OFFICIAL RESPONSIBILITY
- PUBLIC BUSINESS
Minister for Planning and Environment.
Minister for Planning and Environment.
Minister for Planning and Environment.
Planning Appeals: fees. P.3/2015. Lodged: 13th January 2015.
Minister for Planning and Environment.
Draft Planning and Building (Amendment No. 6) (Jersey) Law 2014 (Appointed P.7/2015. Day) Act 201-.
Minister for Planning and Environment.
Law Revision Board: appointment of member. P.8/2015. Lodged: 20th January 2015.
Draft Employment (Amendment No. 8) (Jersey) Law 2014 (Appointed Day) Act P.9/2015. 201-.
Council of Ministers. (Consideration in Committee')
- ARRANGEMENT OF PUBLIC BUSINESS 10th March 2015
Public Holidays: designation of Friday 8th May 2015. P.11/2015. Lodged: 2nd February 2015.
Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier .
Jersey Overseas Aid Commission.
Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier .
Draft Financial Services Ombudsman (Jersey) Law 2014 (Appointed Day) (No. 2) P.17/2015. Act 201-.
Minister for Economic Development.
The Minister for External Relations has given notice that he wishes for the following matter to be considered by the Assembly in Committee' at this meeting –
External Relations: Report for the period September 2013 to January 2015. R.15/2015. Presented: 19th February 2015.
Minister for External Relations.
24th March 2015
Draft Air and Sea Ports (Incorporation) (Jersey) Law 201-. P.5/2015. Lodged: 15th January 2015.
Draft Video Recordings (Amendment) (Jersey) Law 201-. P.10/2015. Lodged: 28th January 2015.
Minister for Economic Development.
Minister for External Relations.
Gas Tariffs: reduction. P.18/2015. Lodged: 17th February 2015.
Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier .
14th April 2015
Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme: revised Scheme. P.13/2015. Lodged: 5th February 2015.
Draft Shipping (Fishing Vessels Safety Codes of Practice) (Jersey) Regulations P.19/2015. 201-.
Minister for Economic Development.
M.N. DE LA HAYE, O.B.E. Greffier of the States
19th February 2015 Note –
In accordance with the meeting dates fixed for 2015 by the Privileges and Procedures Committee, this meeting will continue, if necessary, on Wednesday 25th and Thursday 26th February 2015.
Explanatory Note regarding subordinate legislation tabled at this meeting. (See Item B)
R&O.14/2015.
This Order establishes a Board of Governance of the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General and makes provision for its membership, proceedings, resources and functions.
The Order was made on 6th February 2015 and came into force on 13th February 2015. R&O.15/2015.
This Order revokes an earlier Order but gives continued effect in Jersey to Council Regulation (EU) No 101/2011 concerning restrictive measures directed against certain persons, entities and bodies in view of the situation in Tunisia (OJ No. L 31/1, 5.2.2011), now as amended up to the date of making the Order and now including any future changes to the lists of persons subject to restrictive measures (or to the list of competent authorities). All the general provisions in the EU Legislation (Sanctions) (General Provisions) (Jersey) Order 2014 form part of this Order.
The Order was made on 9th February 2015 and came into force on 10th February 2015. R&O.16/2015.
This Order amends the EU Legislation (Sanctions – Côte d'Ivoire) (Jersey) Order 2015 in order to give effect to Council Regulation (EU) 2015/192 of 9 February 2015 (OJ L33, 10.2.2015, p.1). That Council Regulation amends Regulation EC No 174/2005 imposing restrictions on the supply of assistance related to military activities in the Côte d'Ivoire. The main change made by Council Regulation (EU) 2015/192 is to insert an additional derogation from the prohibition on the sale, supply, transfer and export of equipment which might be used for internal repression in order to enable the authorisation of certain equipment for civilian use in mining or infrastructure projects.
The Order was made on 17th February 2015 and came into force on 18th February 2015.
WRITTEN QUESTIONS (See Item I(a))
- The Minister for Treasury and Resources will table an answer to the following question asked by the Deputy of Grouville –
"How much have all the reports pertaining to the proposed Property Tax produced to date actually cost, namely PwC, the consultation report and the questionnaire?
How much will it cost to implement and why is it considered necessary to change the system? Would it be more efficient to revise the existing system?
Could PwC undertake to make clear the response to the consultation and if they consider it to be a good response and, if not, why not?
Have the land taxes imposed in Ireland, Denmark and New Zealand been considered by the Minister and compared to what is being proposed and the system in Jersey at present?"
- The Minister Home Affairs for will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy L.M.C. Doublet of St. Saviour –
"Will the Minister advise:
- what statistics the department holds relating to levels of violence against women and girls in Jersey, including rape and sexual assault, and what is being done to reduce these levels and encourage women to report violent crimes; particularly rape and sexual assault;
- in light of the prevalence of these types of crime, what the department is doing, or planning to do, if anything, to increase their detection and resolution;
- whether the department can do more to help prevent these crimes, and what other departments could do to contribute towards this;
- whether the department is aware of the new charity Jersey Action Against Rape which was set up to provide support for victims of these crimes; whether the department intends to support the work of this charity and, if so, how?"
- The Minister for Health and Social Services will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy L.M.C. Doublet of St. Saviour –
"Will the Minister advise:
- if there is there a shortage of trained nurses in the Island;
- what statistics the department has around the use of agency nurses;
- how much this costs compared to having permanently employed nurses;
- what, if anything, is being done to train nurses locally?"
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier –
"Will the Minister advise members of -
- the number of enforcement actions brought in the Magistrate's and Royal Courts by the Department over the last five years without reference to the Law Officers' Department or to the Law Officers' Department's legal advisers before charges were laid in these courts;
- who determined the public interest in these actions;
- how many of the people charged with enforcement infractions pleaded guilty, not guilty and, if the latter, were convicted; and
- in those cases in which the defendant pleaded not guilty, the number of cases that were then taken over by the Department's legal advisers?"
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier –
"Further to the letter dated 12th February 2015 to the Minister for Planning and Environment from Mr. Paul Harben of Collas Crill, which was copied to all States Members, regarding the Esplanade Development, will the Minister set out the questions and statements made by the author of the letter and the Minister's answers or responses to each of those statements and questions in the order they were presented?"
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M.R. Higgins of St. Helier –
"Will the Minister provide an annual breakdown of the number of people who were actively seeking work during the period 2008 to 2014 -
- who opted for self-employment, together with the nature of self-employment they decided to pursue;
- whose income had to be supplemented by income support whilst self- employed; and,
- who returned to the unemployment register as actively seeking work after a period as self- employed, indicating the length of time they were classed as self-employed?"
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier –
"Following recent media reports about the potential final cost of the Committee of Inquiry into Historic Child Abuse rising significantly above what was originally forecast, will the Chief Minister commit to making available the necessary public funds to ensure that the Committee of Inquiry is able to fulfil its purpose?"
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier –
"Given the commitment by both the Conservative-led government and opposition Labour Party to see a public register of beneficial ownership of companies in the United Kingdom, what measures, if any, has the Jersey government taken to investigate the feasibility of creating such a register in the Island and, if measures have been taken, how long does he envisage that it will take to create such a register and what would the approximate cost be?"
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to a question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier –
"Following my written question of 20th November 2012 and question without notice on 5th November 2013, will the Chief Minister inform members whether the Jersey Financial Services Commission has reported on the findings resulting from its investigation into the extent of breaches of Anti-Money Laundering/Combatting the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regulations previously reported in a U.S. Senate investigation into the activities of HSBC Middle East in Jersey?
If so, will the Minister inform members what sanctions, if any, the JFSC has imposed on the Jersey branch of HSBC Middle East, as a result of any AML/CFT breaches found?
If not, will the Minister inform members why this investigation has taken so long, and despite the assurances of the former Minister for Economic Development that "we can be confident that the regulator will act properly and decisively in accordance with its mandate," whether and when we can expect any action at all?
What measures have been put in place by the Jersey authorities to ensure that the standards of governance and compliance of Jersey HSBC subsidiaries, such as HSBC Middle East, are much higher than those recently exposed in HSBC Switzerland by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists?"
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier –
"Does the Chief Minister accept that any links provided by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists between the activities of HSBC Switzerland and financial activities in Jersey such as the following, which appeared in the Guardian on 13th February 2015, do not reflect well on the reputation of our financial services industry:
"In Malta, Tancred Tabone, ex-head of the state oil company, was charged in 2013 with alleged corruption dating back to 2005. Two HSBC accounts are named in the allegations.
HSBC also set up a Jersey offshore trust into which Tabone deposited $1m (£650,000). He planned to transfer in more funds, the bank wrote enthusiastically, noting "the potential is evaluated [at] over US$10m", noting Tabone was "personally known by HSBC Malta"?
Is the Chief Minister aware of any further links between HSBC Switzerland and Jersey implying lax application of compliance rules, and, if so, what actions will the Minister take to protect the integrity of Jersey's Financial Services Industry?"
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier –
"Does the Chief Minister consider that the schemes, recently revealed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, devised and aggressively marketed by HSBC Switzerland, whereby wealthy individuals were encouraged to transfer their funds from a savings account to a corporate account (with no genuine trading activity) thus evading the European Union savings tax directive (EUSD), constituted serious tax evasion?
What assurance, if any, can the Chief Minister give to members that such a scheme has not been operated in Jersey by HSBC, its subsidiaries or by other banks or financial institutions either now or in the past?
Notwithstanding his response to the latter, what evidence does the Chief Minister have, or will he seek, to support any such assurance?"
- The Minister for Economic Development will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier –
"Will the Minister set out for members the structure of the new body "Visit Jersey" which is to take over the direction of tourism policy in terms of:
- funding;
- remuneration of board members;
- staff numbers and positions;
- staff terms and conditions?
Can the Minister further inform members how many of the staff previously employed in Jersey Tourism have been offered employment with the new Public-Private Partnership body and if this is zero, or close to it, can the Minister state why so many years of experience have been ignored?
Can the Minister inform members what terms have been offered to those employees who have effectively been made redundant in the transfer of the Tourism Department to an outside body?"
- The Minister for Housing will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy G.P. Southern of St. Helier –
"Following the incorporation of the States of Jersey Housing Department into Andium Homes, could the Minister confirm that this has resulted in a significant reduction in the rights of appeal for tenants of, or applicants for, Andium Homes, in that they have lost access to the States of Jersey Complaints Board as the last resort before appeal to the Royal Court over important disputed housing decisions?
Could the Minister inform members whether the current appeals system put in place by Andium Homes is an entirely internal process with no recourse to an independent hearing, and, if so, has the Minister sought advice on whether the new appeals system is human rights compliant?
What measures in the short and long term, if any, does the Minister have under consideration to ensure that social rental tenants have access to an independent appeals process?"
- The Chief Minister will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade –
"Is the Chief Minister committed to tackling tax avoidance, more generally, in addition to his previous commitments on "tax evasion" and "aggressive tax avoidance"?
Will the Chief Minister also provide examples of when "ordinary tax avoidance" becomes "aggressive tax avoidance" and where the onus lies in Jersey for tackling these mechanisms, which may have their genesis elsewhere?"
- The Minister for Housing will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade –
"What percentage of a household's net income does the Minister consider is reasonable to spend on renting one's home; what figures, if any, are available regarding the average spend in Jersey by tenants and is the Minister aware of how these figures compare with neighbouring countries in Europe?"
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade –
"Will the Minister provide a breakdown for the estimated CO2 emissions made by Jersey (by cars, air travel, energy use and so on), how these compare in percentage terms with other countries and detail what steps, if any, are being taken to reduce emissions in all of these areas?"
- The Minister for Planning and Environment will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade –
"Does the Minister consider that enough was done by his predecessors to tackle the problem of non- occupied, derelict or dilapidated properties and what action, if any, will he be proposing to tackle these issues?"
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade –
"Will the Minister inform members how many claims for Income Support (IS) are subject to a reduction in rental component because of under occupation?
Of those claims subject to this reduction how many are:
- pensioner households where the adult children have left;
- non-pensioner households where the family has left home;
- households where there are adult children still resident;
- households where there are health, disability or other needs which require an extra room?
Is it still the case, as previously with the Housing Department that in (a) and (b) above the under occupation is disregarded if the tenant has applied to downsize?
In this context how many Andium one bed properties become available for downsizing annually?
In (c) if the family separated in order to release a 2 or 3-bed property, what proportion would result in an increase in IS paid as one rent component became 2 or 3 separate claims?"
- The Minister for Home Affairs will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier –
"Is the Minister aware of the current location of the item known as "Jar/6" which was unearthed by the States of Jersey Police during investigations at Haut de la Garenne in 2008 and, if so, is she able to provide a dated chronology of where it has been since its discovery, including at which laboratories?"
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier –
"Would the Minister inform members whether the Health Insurance Fund, which currently stands at £80m and had a surplus of contributions over expenditure in 2013, has sufficient reserves to fund any surge in GP consultations on the part of children currently subject to reduced or zero charges from some GP practices and, if so, does she consider that claims that the Department does not have sufficient funds to provide for any such surge are inaccurate?"
- The Minister for Social Security will table an answer to the following question asked by Deputy S.Y. Mézec of St. Helier –
"Can the Minister explain to members the justification for the use of loans rather than grants for special payments to Income Support claimants in respect of rental deposits and medical expenses?"
ORAL QUESTIONS TO MINISTERS WITHOUT NOTICE (See Item I(c))
2015
1st Session 2015
March 10th Transport and Technical Services March 24th External Relations
April 14th Treasury and Resources
April 28th Health and Social Services
Home Affairs
Chief Minister
Education, Sport and Culture Chief Minister
COUNCIL OF MINISTERS' PROPOSED STRATEGIC PRIORITIES 2015-2018 (R.8/2015) PROCEDURES FOR CONSIDERATION IN COMMITTEE'
(See Item L)
Standing Order 97 of the Standing Orders of the States of Jersey is in the following terms:
97 States sitting in committee: procedure and rules of discussion
- While the States are sitting in committee, the chairman shall have the powers and duties of the presiding officer.
- The rules of order, conduct and debate in a meeting shall apply while the States are sitting in committee to discuss any matter save that –
- a member of the States may speak more than once during the discussion;
- the chairman may allow any person to be present in the Chamber and invite that person to speak;
- the matter under discussion shall not be voted upon;
- the chairman shall decide when sufficient time has been allowed for a discussion on any part or aspect of the matter;
- the chairman shall decide when the sitting shall end.
In Committee debate is a normal part of States procedures, except that, unlike in usual debates, each member can speak more than once and there is no vote at the conclusion of discussions. The Chief Minister has indicated that he wishes this debate to conclude during the afternoon of Tuesday 24th February 2015.