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STATES OF JERSEY
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CORPORATE SERVICES SCRUTINY PANEL: WATERFRONT ENTERPRISE BOARD (P.12/2009) (S.R.1/2009) – RESPONSE OF THE CHIEF MINISTER
Presented to the States on 23rd June 2009 by the Chief Minister
STATES GREFFE
2009 Price code: A S.R.1 Res.
CORPORATE SERVICES SCRUTINY PANEL: WATERFRONT ENTERPRISE BOARD (P.12/2009) (S.R.1/2009) –
RESPONSE OF THE CHIEF MINISTER
Introduction
The Chief Minister is pleased to take this opportunity to respond to the Scrutiny Sub- Panel's Report into the Waterfront Enterprise Board (S.R.1/2009). He acknowledges the findings, recommendations and general intentions of the report and congratulates the Sub-Panel for providing such a detailed account and understanding of some of the issues currently facing the Waterfront Enterprise Board. Furthermore, the Chief Minister appreciates the very tight timescale within which the Sub-Panel has undertaken its research and published its report.
Findings
• The proposal to remove States Directors from the Board of WEB can, in itself, be justified and is consistent with previous decisions of the States Assembly.
• Any new plans for WEB will need to be monitored carefully to ensure there is an appropriate balance between the maintenance of commercial confidentiality and a sufficiently high degree of transparency.
The Council of Ministers welcomes the findings of the Sub-Panel and agrees with all the recommendations made and these are included in the updated Report and Proposition – "Property and Infrastructure Regeneration: The States of Jersey Development Company Limited" which is to be lodged by the Council of Ministers.
Recommendations
Recommendation 1:
An Oversight Committee of WEB, consisting of States Members, should be established.
Accepted.
Given that the proposed Regeneration Steering Group (contained in the revised proposals indicated above) is composed of 6 (possibly 7) States Members, it would be for this group to provide oversight and a political steer to The States of Jersey Development Company Limited ("SoJDC"). In addition, the Public Accounts Committee and the Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel would also play an important role in the scrutiny and oversight of the activities of SoJDC.
Recommendation 2:
Further clarification should be provided on the rôle to be played by the Ministerial Appointee.
Accepted.
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• The Ministerial Appointee would represent the interests of the Minister for Treasury and Resources, which are clearly outlined in paragraph 12 of the Report and Proposition indicated above. The Ministerial Appointee would report to the Minister for Treasury and Resources.
Recommendation 3:
Ministerial Decisions relating to WEB should be subject to a 15 day grace' period in order to allow sufficient transparency and scrutiny.
Accepted.
• This recommendation forms part of the proposed role of the Minister for Treasury and Resources as outlined above.
Recommendation 4:
The remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General in relation to WEB should be widened.
Accepted.
• The Public Accounts Committee has lodged a Proposition (P.54/2009) which will put this recommendation into effect.
Recommendation 5:
WEB's annual accounts should be formally presented to the States Assembly.
Accepted.
• The Minister for Treasury and Resources has already presented WEB's 2008 Annual Accounts to the States earlier in the year. In future it is proposed that the Minister continues to do this on an annual basis.
Conclusion
The Chief Minister is very grateful for the work of the Sub-Panel and appreciates the efforts of the Sub-Panel is publishing its report in a very short timescale. All of the recommendations of the Sub-Panel have been accepted and these will be implemented as part of revised proposals to be presented to the States for approval.
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