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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BY DEPUTY G.P. SOUTHERN OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 23rd JUNE 2015
Question
Further to the Minister's speech to the Jersey Chamber of Commerce on 11th June 2015, can he explain what he meant when he said that Economic Development had "swept away the old mantra of high value and low value business"? Can the Minister advise whether this a new policy decision and, if so, when will it be brought to the States for endorsement?
Answer
One of the four objectives in the Economic Growth and Diversification Strategy (EGDS), approved by the States, is to increase productivity across the whole economy.
Whilst it is clear from published statistics that the GVA per capita varies from sector to sector the strategy and policy of the Council of Ministers, the Economic Development Minister and EDD is founded on the belief that all sectors have a significant contribution to make to increased productivity-led growth. As a consequence, consistent with the EGDS, the policy is to work with all sectors to increase productivity.
EDD's work, in partnership with other departments, in sectors such as tourism and agriculture that have a relatively low per capita GVA is aimed at increasing productivity. For instance:
Productivity in the tourism sector can be increased, in part, by increasing visitor numbers. In 2014 and the first quarter of 2015 it is encouraging to see that visitor number have indeed increased. Sustaining this trend is, in no small part, why Visit Jersey has been created with an aggressive target to increase visitor numbers and further increase productivity.
In addition to continued work on farm productivity, increasing exports from Jersey's rural sector has the potential to significantly increase profitability and productivity in the dairy sector.
The statement made in the speech to the Chamber of Commerce on 11th June 2015 is wholly consistent with the broad based approach to productivity-led growth which is an established and well developed policy position.