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2024.09.10
2.2 Connétable K.C. Lewis of St. Saviour of the Chief Minister regarding sharing the cost of a mail plane with Guernsey (OQ 153/2024):
Further to the news that Guernsey may lose its mail plane due to Royal Mail funding cuts, will the Minister consider engaging with his Guernsey counterparts to discuss sharing the cost of a mail plane to both Islands; and if not, why not?
Deputy L.J. Farnham of St. Mary , St. Ouen and St. Peter (The Chief Minister):
The short answer to that is yes, the Government would consider opening discussions along those lines. However, Government has not previously funded this service and there is no provision to do so, although successful talks could lead to a new provision being found. I have since discovered that the cost is no longer viable given the significant drop in the delivery of mail to and from the Island. The annual costs for a mail plane was £6 million per annum with £1.2 million being covered by the Post Office in Jersey and the rest by Royal Mail, so I think commercially, while I am prepared to have discussions with Guernsey, being realistic, I think, it is going to be commercially unviable.
2.2.1 The Connétable of St. Saviour :
I thank the Chief Minister for his answer, but there are many daily flights from the U.K. - British Airways and many other flights - on a daily basis. Could some arrangement be made so that they could carry the mail to both Islands, obviously supplemented by both Islands?
Deputy L.J. Farnham :
I am not sure what the freight carrying capacity arrangements in relation to the commercial air passenger services are, but I know officials have discussed the matter with the Post Office, who feel that the new arrangements have settled down well with no disruption to the service. But I will undertake to have those discussions and report back to the Constable.