This content has been automatically generated from the original PDF and some formatting may have been lost. Let us know if you find any major problems.
Text in this format is not official and should not be relied upon to extract citations or propose amendments. Please see the PDF for the official version of the document.
_______________
Lodged au Greffe on 27th April 1999 by the Housing Committee
______________________________
STATES OF JERSEY
STATES GREFFE
175 1 9 9 9 P . 5 4
Price code: B
____________
In the proposition -
( a ) in paragraph 1, after the words "and Proposals for Change" insert "together with the Committee's
Supplementary Report", and for the words "on page 4 of the Report" substitute the words "in the Supplementary Report dated 19th April 1999";
(b ) d e lete paragraph 4;
(c ) a fte r paragraph 6, insert the following paragraph -
"6A. To agree, in principle, that, with effect from 27th April 1999, paragraph 1(1)(f) of the Housing (General
Provisions) (Jersey) Regulations 1970, as amended, should not apply to persons arriving in the Island on or after that date.".
HOUSING COMMITTEE
SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT TO P.201/98
The Housing Committee, under the Presidency of Deputy Shirley Baudains, has given careful consideration to the Housing Strategy Report prepared by the previous Committee. In large part, the new Committee supports the proposals put forward by the Strategy Report, with the notable exception of paragraph 4 of the proposition and paragraphs 6.3 to 6.7 of the report, which propose the sale of 15 per cent of States' rental accommodation to Housing Trusts.
The Committee has therefore decided to proceed with debate of P.201/98, subject to certain amendments outlined below.
A report and proposition dealing with the funding of social rented and first-time buyer housing will be lodged separately with the intention that this be debated immediately after the main Housing Strategy debate.
Housing Committee principal aims
The principal aims of the Committee are listed on pages 4 - 9 of the Strategy Report. The Committee has decided to amend the principal aims as follows, with the amendments shown in bold.
Housing Committee principal aims (as amended February 1999)
Shelter is a fundamental human need, and in seeking to progress towards the States' vision the Housing Committee has the following principal aims -
1 . T o ensure that all Island residents are adequately housed in secure and affordable accommodation, with
priority given to those with residential qualifications.
2 . T o concentrate on providing assistance to those in need.
3 . T o provide housing which is sustainable, making optimum use of scarce land resources.
4 . T o also enable housing for those in need to be provided through a range of funding mechanisms to include
Housing Trusts, and with the involvement of the private sector, in order to make the most cost-effective use of public funds.
5 . T o ensure the Island's stock of social rented housing is properly maintained and, where necessary, improved. 6 . T o encourage the principle of home ownership.
7 . T o utilise resources in the most cost-effective way.
8 . T o support all measures that help to reduce the growth of the population through immigration.
In amending principal aim 4, the Committee is not seeking to minimise the role of Housing Trusts in providing more social rented housing in the future, but simply making it clear that all avenues in respect of funding for social rented and first-time buyer housing are left open.
In achieving principal aim 7,
"to u tilis e resources in the most cost-effective way",
the Committee has not ruled out using the property asset base to raise additional funds for social rented housing but this would not involve the sale or transfer of the stock to a third party.
The Committee has included an additional principal aim, which is -
"to su p p ort all measures that help to reduce the growth of the population through immigration".
Section 2 of this Strategy Report deals with supply and demand, and the Committee believes very strongly that, unless effective measures to control immigration are supported by all States' Committees, there will be continued growth in the population and a resultant need for more residential accommodation, as well as many other services, to be provided.
Twenty-year rule
The Committee regularly receives applications for housing consent from families, some with young children, who have spent all their working lives and in excess of fifteen years in Jersey. The Committee believes that for the long-term residents without housing qualifications, some relaxation of the twenty-year rule is appropriate. This matter is dealt with in paragraph 6 (a) and (b) of the proposition and section 3.4(i) of the report.
However, the Committee believes that, while there remains an obligation to assist those already resident in the Island, a clear message should be given to newcomers that they will not be permitted to settle here and will not be granted access to regulated housing accommodation. The Committee therefore proposes that, for all those persons arriving in the Island after the date of lodging of this amendment, paragraph 1(1)(f) of the Housing Regulations should not apply.
This will effectively remove the right to qualify for housing consent through length of residence alone for all newcomers to the Island. The Committee accepts that this measure will not in itself prevent people from coming to Jersey and that proper immigration controls will still be required if the flow inwards is to be halted.