Number of applications for permission to enter the qualified housing market in Jersey

1240/5(5039)

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HOUSING BY DEPUTY R.G. LE HÉRISSIER OF ST. SAVIOUR

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 19th JANUARY 2010

Question

Could the Minister indicate the number of applications made for permission to enter the qualified housing market in Jersey, for persons not otherwise qualified, in each of the last three years?

How many of these were granted and on what grounds? Answer

The discretionary provisions of the Housing (General Provisions) (Jersey) Regulations 1970 are restricted to paragraphs (1)(1)(g), 1(1)(j) and 1(1)(k), statistics for each of which are outlined below.

In addition, other provisions of the Housing Regulations compel the Minister to grant consent subject to certain residence conditions being met. In this regard, statistics for non Jersey born persons approved as qualifying under paragraph 1(1)(f) are provided.

1. Grantingconsentunderparagraph,1(1)(g),hardshipgrounds

*statistics for 2005 relate only to cases considered by Committee. Decisions taken under delegated powers are recorded against individual files and system entries only in 2005, and are not readily extracted and complied. The figures for 2006 – 2009 reflect all 1(1)(g) decisions whether taken by Minister or by Officers.

In order to grant 1(1)(g) consent the Minister should be satisfied that the hardship, other than financial, which would be caused to the purchaser, transferee, or lessee or to persons ordinarily resident in Jersey if not consent were not to be granted outweighs the fact that a person does not qualify under any other provision of the Law.

Of the 72 applications considered to end of October, 2009, they can be roughly broken down into the following categories:-

As a generality, to be approved a consent following a relationship breakdown the relationship would normally have lasted some considerable time or some other relevant circumstances should exist, e.g. needs of any children, domestic violence, medical grounds, etc; approval following a break in residence is granted with reference to length of previous residence, length of break and reason for the break; medical grounds depends on the severity of the condition and often the circumstances and needs of any children; granting consent following death of a partner is subject to length of relationship and circumstances. Clearly, a very wide range of circumstances can exist however, and each case is considered on its merits and with reference to precedent.

The above figures do not include:-

• Individuals  who  make  telephone  or  e-mail  enquiries  where  their  circumstances  are  such  that  an application for early residential qualifications would have a remote chance of success and are not pursued,

e.g. very low residence, no medical, no children; Individuals who fulfil the criteria (a)-(c) of the established Marriage Breakdown Policy, as in these instances, consent under Regulation 1(1) (g) of the Housing Regulations is automatically granted.

A present few are granted consent automatically under the published marriage and relationship breakdown policy and most hardship consents are wholly discretionary. The marriage and relationship breakdown policy is as follows:

Because of the hardship otherwise caused to minor children of a marriage or common-law relationship  if consent is not granted, consent is granted to an unqualified spouse or partner  providing that:-

1. the unqualifiedspouseor partner  hasbeenmarriedto,and/or living with, the qualified spouseor partner  in th Island foratleastthe previous five years;and
2. theunqualifiedspouseor partner  hasbeencontinuously ordinary resident in Jersey for at least the previous ten years; and
3. the unqualified spouse or partner  has care and controlof the child(ren) either by means of a legal separation or a Court Order. Any consent granted tooccupyaccommodation will be conditional upon the unqualified spousein question continuing to havecareand control ofthe minor child(ren).Inthecaseof a common-law relationship breakdown,noCourtOrder will be granted  butcare and control  of any child ofthe relationship must still be with the applicanton a full time basis.

2. Grantingconsentunderparagraph, 1(1)(j), essentialemployment

J applications 2005 – 2009 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 Total Approvals 348 533 497 485 382

A 1(1)(j) housing consent will only be granted where it can be demonstrated that a person is essentially employed and housing consent can be justified in the "best interest of the community" given the duty of the Housing Minister to "prevent further aggravation of the housing shortage". In particular, the following criteria will be relevant:

• The pressure to be placed on the Island's resources, in particular, its housing stock;

• The need to maintain a balanced and prosperous economy;

• The need to maintain a range of job and training opportunities for locally qualified persons and school leavers, including apprentices, those over normal working age, and people in supported and special

employment schemes; The importance of the service rendered to locally qualified persons; The track record of the undertaking in terms of profitability, and its contribution to tax revenues.

In addition, the Minister may also take into account any other general benefits which the Island may obtain, for example, in relation to past cultural, sporting, or charitable activities, or the potential effects for Jersey's reputation and interests, including the nature of any actual or potential media coverage.

In making decisions, business plans and financial details may be requested, as may

evidence of investing in training locally qualified persons, and having made appropriate

efforts to identify suitable local candidates. Applications will be processed more quickly if

this information is submitted. Reference will also be had to previous relevant decisions, in particular, those taken in relation to similar businesses. This will be done to ensure decisions are fair and consistent, and that businesses operate, as a general principle, on a level playing field with their competitors. In doing this, the Minister will nevertheless be mindful that each case presents its own unique range of facts and matters to consider.

The above is extracted from the published policy statement, and illustrate the grounds on which consent may be granted.

3. Grantingconsentunderparagraph, 1(1)(k), social oreconomicgrounds

The following factors will be taken into account when applications are considered for a (k) consent

• The individual's contribution to tax revenues in accordance with Article 135A of the Income Tax Law

• The business/social background of the applicant and the associated benefit that could arise for Jersey as a result of the taking up of residence in the Island;

• Any other general benefits which the Island may obtain if the applicant takes up residence in the Island

Applicants will normally be required to demonstrate that they are able to generate sufficient income so that, at the present rate of tax, their annual contribution is at least £100,000. In some circumstances a lower contribution of tax might be acceptable if other particularly compelling economic benefits for the Island would be likely to result from the applicant taking up residence, but this is rare and no such consents have been issued in the last 4 years. As such, all consents in the period 2006 – 2009 have met the minimum tax criteria.

It should be noted the ability to generate the above minimum tax requirement will not necessarily on its own be sufficient to justify consent.

Other than tax contributions, aspects of an application that the Minister may take into account include:

1. voluntary work orbusiness contribution tolocalcommunity
2. any training orsporting initiatives particularly aimedatyouthoreducational organisations,
3. the natureof any actual or potential media coverageof any activities either by,orinvolving the applicant, both inhisbusinessorsocial life. This to include negativeimages relating to past business practice, and positive imagessuchas sporting oreducationalachievements,
4. any cultural interests or skills that have benefited thelocalcommunitywhich would be likely to of similar benefit to the Island
5. general lifestyle and family circumstances, including past charitable workand contributions
6. any clear undesirable factors in an applicants background, such as a criminal record.

As a result of the above considerations, it follows that the Minister will take into account any likely local impact that an applicant will have on taking up residence in Jersey.

In addition to the above, an applicant's intention to carry out further business activities in the Island will be taken into account, with particular regard to future local employment, training, diversification and any potential resultant increased tax revenues.

An applicant that falls short of the expected tax take but has other potential benefits to offer such as those outlined above will be considered. Equally, where the pure economic test is met, other factors which might have a positive or negative bearing will be balanced in determining the application.

4. Grantingconsentunderparagraph, 1(1)(f), non Jersey born following a periodof11yearscontinuous

residence in Jersey

Year Non Jersey Born Numbers Qualified 2006 474

2007 790

2008 572

2009 902

Total 1,836