Corporate Services - Approved Panel Minutes - 21 December 2005

Item No

Agenda matter

Action

1

Welcome/Introduction - Chairman

The Chairman welcomed the Panel to the first Panel meeting.

2

Panel's  remit  covering  Chief  Minister's  Department  and Treasury and Resources Ministry

The Panel was informed that the Chairman had arranged to meet with the Chief Minister and the Treasury and Resources Minister on

the 16th January 2006 to discuss future working practices between Corporate Services. The Panel requested an agenda be prepared

for this meeting.

The Panel requested a list of all non-executive areas that fall under the Corporate Services Panel remit.

Chairman Officers Officers

3

Objectives and priorities of Chief Minister's Department and Treasury and Resources Ministry

The Panel  agreed that this matter  should be deferred until the Departmental Business Plans were available at the beginning of January 2006.

4

Budget Scrutiny process

The  Panel  decided  to  defer  this  matter  until  the  Departmental Business  Plans  were  available.  The  Panel  agreed  that  the Chairman would inform the Chairmen's Committee that the Panel considered that any scrutiny of the budget process should fall under the remit of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), however the Panel would be willing to scrutinise any political issues associated with the budget.

Chairman

5

Potential legislative scrutiny

The Panel considered a list of forthcoming legislation drawn from the Legislation Programme 2006 and agreed that the Residents Registration Law should be highlighted as a potential review topic.

6

Potential  scrutiny  of  International  Agreements  and Conventions

The Panel noted the most recent progress report on international conventions and agreements for the period 1st October 2004 to 31st March 2005 and agreed that potential areas of interest would be:

• International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connexion with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea 1996.

• Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.
• International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage 2001.

The officers were directed to request further information on these issues.

Officers

7

Indications of interest from Panel members

The Panel proposed the following potential review topics:

• GST – to review the implementation and the exemptions involved with the new taxation structure, and to initially look at exemptions in place in other jurisdictions.

• 20% means 20%.
• Corporate taxation – 0/10%
• Look-through provisions on taxation
• Public sector pension provision – check whether this is being looked into by PAC

• States department's paying rates
• Financial Services Commission
• Property portfolio
• Fulfilment industry

The Panel directed officers to undertake preliminary fact finding investigations on these issues.

The Panel noted two further proposals: one from a member of the public regarding Jersey's compliance with human rights obligations, carried  over  from  the  Shadow  Scrutiny  period;  and  another regarding data protection arising from the Shadow Panel report on legal advice.

Officers

8

Methods of working

• Schedule of meetings

The Panel agreed to meet formally once a month and informally two weeks  before the formal  meetings.  These  meetings would  take place on Thursdays of States weeks at 9.30 am.

The first meeting date would be on 19th January 2006, which was the  second  training  day  on  developing  the  work  programme,

beginning at 9.00 am. The Panel requested a list of dates and times of future meetings.

• Contact with media

The Panel agreed that the Chairman would be responsible for all contact with the media. It was also agreed that the Panel would provide the media with a monthly press update.

Officers