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STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT OF ENVIRONMENT & PUBLIC SERVICES COMMITTEE
TUESDAY 7 OCTOBER 2003 ORGANISATIONAL CHANGES
On 29 April this year I made a statement setting out the progress made by my Committee in implementing organisational changes arising from Machinery of Government reform (P.70/2002). I undertook to report back to the States in July, but unfortunately, this was not possible. Today I am delighted to be able to speak for the President of the Economic Development Committee, and announce changes which we propose to make.
I previously advised the States that a review was being carried out by the Chief Officers of the Agriculture & Fisheries Department's functions. This task was completed in September when my Committee and the Economic Development Committee agreed upon a transfer of responsibility for services with effect from 1 January 2004, together with the allocation of resources and revenue budget for 2004. Full details of the changes are set out in the "Third Interim Report" produced for the two Committees and appendices and I am arranging to have electronic copies available to States Members.
In summary the following functions are proposed to be retained by the Economic Development Committee:
- Industry policy - Agriculture & Fisheries
- Marketing and promotion
- Financial aid to industries.
Functions to be transferred to the Environment & Public Services Committee:
- Fisheries
- Land regulation
- Technical
- Veterinary regulation
- All operational services - abattoir, composting/waste.
The aim of the review was to establish an organisation which joins together those services with a synergy and common purpose to ensure that their financial and manpower resources can be more efficiently aligned in pursuance of strategic objectives in the future.
In the future organisation the transferred functions will be managed alongside the complementary functions of the Environment & Public Services Committee, for example - agricultural waste will in future be managed with municipal and industry waste; scientific, technical and regulatory functions with land based and marine environmental activities of the Environment Services team of the Planning & Environment Department. This will require this team, and the Water Resources team, previously of the Public Services Department based at Bellozanne, to relocate to Howard Davis Farm as soon as practicable.
Both Committees have decided that, subject to the States approval of the formal transfer of functions required under Statutes, the implementation date is planned for 1 January 2004. In parallel with these changes the Chief Officer of the former Planning & Environment Committee has also been tasked with drawing up the proposed organisational arrangements for the new Environment Department in the ministerial system and the new processes required for the parallel integration of the existing Planning Department at South Hill into the structure of the new government Department. The Chief Officer of the Public Services Department has a similar task to assimilate the operational functions into his Department of government.
As part of the Fundamental Spending Review for 2005-2007 the Chief Officers are further reviewing all their services to identify options for budget reductions in future years. The agreement reached with the Economic Development Committee recognised the agricultural industry had made representations for savings from the reorganisation to be reallocated to them as direct aid to the industry. The options identified for efficiency and service reductions will be submitted to the Fundamental Spending Review process for decisions during 2004.
The two Committees believe it essential to follow this systematic process, first to regroup services under common management, secondly to take the opportunity to identify efficiencies as a result of regrouping services, i.e. by doing the same with less, and only then considering scope for service reductions, i.e. doing less with less, where this can be politically agreed as part of the Fundamental Spending Review.
Beyond these major changes there have also been some shifts in responsibility that realign functions in accord with P.70/2002. There has been agreement on a similar transfer of functions with Economic Development in respect of the Animal (Trapping) (Jersey) Law 1961.
Throughout, the Committee has authorised its Chief Officers in the two Departments to adopt an open approach with all staff individually and with the appropriate staff representatives to ensure there is good communication about the proposed changes. In all cases the mechanisms for reviewing funding in future years, and where it is later politically decided to reduce spending and services, has to be through the Fundamental Spending Review.
Finally, my statement last April also referred to the very important task of integrating the fragmented arrangements for the management of all States property to a single common structure, designed to provide the States with a separate landlord (corporate and strategic) role and an operational (maintenance and use) role built around the Property Services Department as envisaged by P.70.
The Chief Officer of the Planning & Environment Department, the Director of Property Services and the Treasurer of the States are continuing their work with the Chief Executive Officer of the Policy & Resources Department with the new objective of integrating these two roles into a single organisation, including appropriate safeguards designed to ensure that the necessity for short-term financial disciplines does not override long-term strategic thinking in the States future plan for asset utilisation and management.
This will take a little more time to progress but the potential benefits more than justify this investment. I am pleased to report that the Chief Officer of the Policy & Resources Department has advised that his new shadow corporate management board of Chief Officers has set this task as one of its highest priorities in the Fundamental Spending Review. I hope to be able to report progress by the end of the year.