Ministerial Response - Scrutiny Reveiw of the Government Plan 2021-2024 - 10 February 2021

Findings

Comments

1

The removal of the economy function from the IHE Departmental Budget is the main contributing factor in the 20k reduction in Heads of Expenditure from the previous Government Plan, although there are various other small changes to the budget which make up the 20k figure

The  reduction  in  Head  of  Expenditure  for  the department  compared  to  2020  is  almost  £20 million.  Of  this,  £18.3  million  related  to  the transfer of the Economy function. The figure of £20k in the finding is erroneous.

2

The projected income in the IHE Departmental Budget is reduced largely as a result of the "growth" item in 2020 for waste charges (£6.9m) being classified as expenditure growth in the GP 20-23, but reclassified in base budgets in 2021 as a reduction in income. The Panel is advised that the net impact of this reclassification is nil.

This is correct.

3

The funding proposal for the Housing Policy Development Board – Long- Term Plan has been cut by half and whilst the Chief Minister has provided assurances that the level of funding should be sufficient, it remains to be seen as what key outcomes this will deliver. The Board is also yet to publish its report setting out recommendations for a long-term housing policy.

Reprofiling of the Housing PDB Long-term Plan' housing bid from last year's  Government Plan (GP  2020-23)  resulted  in  total  net  saving  of £1.725  million.  Revised  Housing  PDB  Long- term Plan bid is comprised as follows:

 Strategic  Coordination:  To  introduce  a coordination function within government for housing. A core task will be to ensure government  departments  and  housing suppliers  work  together  effectively  in delivering a consistent supply of housing,

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with  an  emphasis  on  providing  more affordable homes;

• Housing Policy development: Reflective of  ongoing  need  for  new  housing legislation and policy advice;

• Shelter Trust Grant: Increasing the grant of  Shelter  Trust  so  it  can  meet  staff resource  requirements  and  operational costs.  Bid  is  consistent  with  the recommendations  of  the  independent Homelessness Strategy; and

• Vacant  Homes:  A  project  will  explore opportunities to bring vacant homes back

into active use.

These bids reflect current housing policy priorities and  are  assessed  as  sufficient  to  deliver  the activities set out. The report of the Housing Policy Development Board has been submitted to the Chief Minister and is expected to be published in the early 2021.

4

The funding proposal for the Tenants' Rights programme has been cut by half and whilst the Chief Minister has provided assurances that the level of funding should be sufficient, it remains to be seen if this will be the case. The Board is also yet to publish its report setting out recommendations for a long-term housing policy.

Reprofiling of Tenants' Rights housing bid from last  year's  Government  Plan  (GP  2020-23) resulted in total net saving of £380,000 in the current  Government  Plan.  Revised  Tenant's Rights bid is comprised as follows:

• Rent  Stabilisation:  Covers  policy evaluation and development as  well as estimated funding required for staff and administrative  costs.  Any  resulting legislation  would  require  assent  of  the States Assembly. Rent stabilisation is one of the themes emerging from the work of the Housing Policy Development Board.

• Homelessness  Services:  Separate  bids submitted  for  policy  evaluation  of appropriate  structured  pathway  for individuals  to  access  housing  and  co- ordinated support, as  well as  staff and administrative costs. Bids are consistent with  the  independent  Jersey Homelessness Strategy.

• Housing  Advice  Service:  As recommended by the Review of Social

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Housing  in  Jersey  (2019)  and  the Independent  Jersey  Homelessness Strategy. It will go live in Q1 2021. Key elements of the service are:

- A Web page and online form to support self-help/low need cases on a variety of housing issues;

- A Housing Support Officer to manage high need emergency housing cases;

- Advisor support to manage telephone and email resources, aimed at medium need cases seeking advice, sign-positing and handover to other services.

These bids reflect current housing policy priorities and  are  assessed  as  sufficient  to  deliver  the activities set out. The report of the Housing Policy Development Board has been submitted to the Chief Minister and is expected to be published in the early 2021.

5

External stakeholders were not consulted at an early stage on the plans to introduce a new Housing Advice Service and therefore have not contributed to shaping how the new service will be delivered.

Two independent reviews have identified the need for the Government of Jersey to provide a housing advice  service:  the  2019  Review  of  Access  to Social  Housing  and  the  2020  Independent Homelessness Review and Strategy. The previous and current Ministers accepted the need to improve the advice, guidance and support provided to the public  on  housing  matters  across  a  range  of tenures, especially urgent housing needs when a person  is  at  risk  of  becoming  homeless.  The reviews  have,  therefore,  provided  a  helpful overview regarding how a housing advice service could  work  in  Jersey  and  have  informed  the development of a new service at Customer and Local Services. Both reviews have been developed with considerable engagement from stakeholders – indeed, the Homelessness Strategy has been co- produced  by  the  public  sector,  charitable organisations, social housing providers and private sector.

The first stage in developing a Housing Advice Service  is  to  improve  the  housing  services provided internally by Government, including a new  housing  portal  on-line  and  employing  a dedicated  housing  support  officer  in  CLS  to support  service  users.  Stakeholders  have  been

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engaged in the proposals for this service, and were asked for their views, for example, on the design of the online portal.

The Housing Advice Service is in its early stages based on 2020 Government Plan funding. As the service  is  developed  in  2021  (with  funding earmarked in the 2021 to 2024 Government Plan) there will be further opportunities for stakeholders to  be  involved.  Considerable  engagement  is anticipated with organisations such as the Shelter Trust as work commences to design new homeless services.

A high-quality Housing Advice Service cannot function  effectively  without  there  being appropriate  referral  mechanisms  and  referral pathways  in  place  to  support  service  users. Partnership  working  between  organisations  is, therefore, essential at all stages  – from policy development,  through  to  implementation  and delivery.

6

The Panel's initial concerns that at least one initiative (strengthening environmental protection against Japanese knotweed as an invasive species) which proposed to be funded by the Climate Emergency Fund did not appear to meet the Terms of Reference of the Fund. These concerns have been alleviated and the Panel is satisfied that these initiatives are linked to responding to the impact of climate change.

Nothing further to add as finding now resolved in follow  up  by  letter  between  the  Panel  and Department as acknowledged.

7

The Minister for the Environment is the lead Minister for the assessment of public infrastructure and resources' programme. However, there is uncertainty as to how much joined up working there is between the Minister for the Environment and the Minister for Infrastructure in relation to the crossover of remits within this programme.

The  Corporate  Asset  Management  Board,  a central  pillar  of  the  Estate  Strategy  recently approved by the Council of Ministers, facilitates the cross department working between Ops and Transport,  Jersey  Property  Holdings  and  the officers  supporting the Environment Minister's remit. In addition to this formal mechanism, there is close informal working at officer level. The separation of ministerial responsibility inherent in IHE  is  unduly  complicated  and  should  be reviewed. Policy should be set by the environment minister and operational matters by the Minister for Infrastructure.

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It  is  the  Minister  view  that  the  separation  of ministerial  responsibility  inherent  in  IHE  is unduly complicated and should be reviewed. In their  view,  policy  should  be  set  by  the Environment  Minister  and  operational  matters should be the remit of the Infrastructure Minister.

8

Progress is being made in relation to the objectives of the Jersey National Park project, however, due to the Covid-19 restrictions there have been limited opportunities for education and interpretation events.

Covid restrictions continue to limit opportunities for education and interpretation events. However, progress has been made in preparation of facilities (Frances Le Sueur Centre) which will be fully utilised as soon as the Covid situation allows.

9

There are concerns of inadequate support being provided to Jersey National Park with it being noted that there is a lack of contact and participation on a practical level from the IHE Department.

Appointment of new posts within the Economy Department in Q4 2020 has enabled the delivery of more support to the JNP management team with  increased  contact  and  participation  on  a practical level by Government officers.

10

There is a lack of clarity as to whether the reduction in funding from £1.5m to £1m in 2021 will be sufficient to meet the aims of the Drainage Foul Sewerage Extensions capital programme which seeks to extend and enhance the sewerage network to keep pace with continued growth in population size.

Most of the population growth is occurring in areas already connected to the foul sewer network. The  drainage  extensions  are  to  outlying properties. Jersey does have a high connection rate with 92% of the properties connected. This programme  must  run  in  parallel  with  the infrastructure vote as the infrastructure vote frees up  capacity  in  the  downstream  network  by reducing the amount of surface water ingression into the system. £1m is sufficient and will deliver approximately one scheme per annum.

11

There are substantial reductions proposed in relation to funding for the Island Public Realm capital project and a lack of clarity as to whether the revised funding will be sufficient to meet the project's aims.

The  Public  Realm  Delivery  Pipeline  has  been developed so that the delivery can be scaled to meet the requirements of the available budgets, the schemes brought forward will be coordinated with  Planning  Obligation  Agreements  from private developer where appropriate, so that so that the whole benefits provided are greater than the constituent parts.

The programme being developed is affordable and will deliver meaningful benefits.

12

The Minister for the Environment was not aware of the reductions in funding

The purpose of the Regeneration Steering Group is to provide political guidance in order to inform

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for the Island Public Realm capital project, suggesting a lack of collaboration and joint working with the Minister for Infrastructure who is lead Minister for this capital project and raising concerns of an ongoing silo approach within Government.

the policy guidelines for all major Public property and regeneration projects in Jersey. This will in practice  mean  that  the  Regeneration  Steering Group translates Masterplans and supplementary planning guidance proposed by the Minister for the  Environment  into  workable  and  viable Development Plans.

In the case of Island Public Realm work, this is informed  by  the  St  Helier  Public  Realm  and Movement Strategy  commission  jointly  by  the Minister for Infrastructure and the Minister for Environment as part of the development work for the Island Plan.

The Regeneration Steering Group is composed of:

• Chief Minister (Chairman)

• Minister for Treasury and Resources

• Minister for Economic Development

• Minister for Infrastructure

• Connétable of St. Helier

The Minister for Environment is excluded from this group and its decisions to avoid conflicts of interest where planning approvals are required. The Minister for the Environment considers this artificial split unnecessary and bound to lead to dysfunctionality.  The  Minister  for  the Environment has  no role in deciding Planning applications,  except  in  cases  where  they  may come to him to decide an appeal and sets planning policies. It would be more sensible to try to align both asset use and planning policies. It should be noted that the set-up of the Regeneration Steering Group  and  the  Minister  for  the  Environment exclusion  said  group  was  by  design  when  the States of Jersey Development was formed.

The  decision  to  reduce  funding  for  the  Island Public Realm within the Government Recovery Plan 2020 – 2023 was undertaken in line with standard Treasury procedures and approvals for proposed  changes  to  budgets  within  the Government Plan process.

13

There has been a funding increase from what was projected in the last Government Plan for the Replacements

The additional funding was re-allocated from the Infrastructure  Head  of  Expenditure  as  the department  was  concerned  about  the  budget

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and Minor Capital for 2021 (2,862,000) to what is now being requested for 2021 (£3,500,00), however, the Panel is advised that even this amount might not be sufficient to meet the project's aims and that realistically £5,000,000 is required.

originally allocated for 2021 in the GP 20-23. Additional  funding  is  being  requested  to  be carried forward from 2020 in order to meet some of the needs identified and mitigate the potential shortfall in budget allocated in the Government Plan 2021-24. Reprioritisation  of  all the  IHE Heads of Expenditure may be required in the new year should funding still be insufficient.

14

Funding of £3.7m which was projected in the capital programme for 2022-23 for refurbishment works of Elizabeth Castle in the 2020 Government Plan has been cut in the 2021 Government Plan projections. No explanation was provided for this in the Government Plan; however, the Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and Culture has indicated that there are other possible funding options available.

The funding for the Elizabeth Castle project was resolved through an amended amendment to the Government Plan. The Heads of Expenditure for Financial Services and Digital will be increased by  £750,000  in  2021  in  order  to  fund  the development of Elizabeth Castle, including the Hospital and Officers' Quarters and the revised business case for the Castle, with a commitment that funding shall be provided in subsequent years to complete the development, no later than the end of 2025, subject to agreeing the updated business case  and  after  the  Jersey  Heritage  Trust  and Ministers  have  worked  together  to  thoroughly investigate other potential funding mechanisms, and that any such funding shall be over and above the 1% allocation for Culture, Arts and Heritage

of overall expenditure.

15

The Vehicle Testing Facility Capital (Major) Project has been deferred in full, including the associated funding. The outcome of the Options Appraisal study is likely to be known in March 2021.

Options  Appraisal  delayed  due  to  COVID but work well underway now.

16

There is a lack of clarity in the reduced funding proposal for the deferred status of the Courtroom 1 – Magistrates Court capital project in relation to a discrepancy of a reduction in £10k which does not appear to be accounted for.

£10k was spent in 2020 and therefore was not available for spend again in 2021. Overall, the project  budget  remains  unchanged,  when  both years  are  taken  into  account  as  the  amount allocated over the period remains £450k.

17

Although it is accepted that there is an expectation that the prefeasibility study for the Picquet House Family Court capital project is unlikely to conclude and that the project is unable to be undertaken, without the outcome of the feasibility study being known, there remains a degree of uncertainty in

The prefeasibility study will be a relatively simple affair that will consider the practicality of the internal works required to deliver a Family court. It  is  assessed  that  there  are  sufficient  funds available.

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regard to whether the funds would be sufficient for the project's requirements.

18

With the outcome of the prefeasibility study currently unknown, there remains a degree of uncertainty in regard to whether the funds would be sufficient for the requirements of the eventual Rouge Bouillon site outcome.

There are 2 dependent pieces of work relating to the Rouge Bouillon site. The first is considering the  location  for  a  joint  Fire  and  Ambulance Station dependent on response times and incident risk  assessments.  If  this shows  that  the  most effective  location  for  the  combined  facility  is elsewhere, then there will be an assessment of what would be the most effective use of the site. If the JHA assessment shows that Rouge Bouillon is the best site for the emergency services, then here will be no second feasibility study.

19

In relation to Fleet Management, there have been delays experienced in committing to new or replacement vehicle assets and the associated revenue leasing charge. As well as a resultant carrying forward of unallocated budgets, there is a degree of uncertainty regarding the allocations.

The  vehicle  replacement  programme  is progressing, and delays have largely been due to uncertainty in client departments during periods of TOM restructure and service reconfiguration. The sums already allocated by the States to the vehicle  replacement  programme  are  rolled forward within the trading operation and form part of the trading fund balance. A review of the programme and the funding is being undertaken presently to inform the next Government Plan in more detail.

20

The Jersey Car Parking Fund has suffered a loss of income due to the Covid-19 pandemic which is likely to impact significantly on its capacity to fund capital refurbishment of the parking estate going forward.

The impact of Covid-19 on the trading operation has  been  significant,  with  a  predicted  loss  of £3.1m income for 2020. It is also expected that until  a  "return  to  normality"  revenues  will continue to be impacted. In addition, behaviour change amongst commuters in particular is likely to have a longer-term impact as increased working from  home  and  alternative  modes  of  travel become more prevalent.

However, in good part due to the historic good stewardship of the multi-storey structures by the Department's  engineers,  it  is  not  at  this  time anticipated  long-term  maintenance  programme will be adversely affected or service life of the buildings reduced.

In the shorter time, some plans to modernise the parking  estate  may  need  to  be  rescoped  or deferred.

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Comments

21

The exact future use of the 28-30 Parade office building is uncertain at present and assurances could not be provided as to how this arrangement would ensure value for money for the taxpayer.

28-30 the Parade was originally procured for a previous hospital project. When that project was cancelled the government was unable to cancel its obligation. The building has however been used productively for the regulation department and Team Jersey and has provided much needed space for the COVID response, in both track and trace teams and media facilities. It is currently being considered for use by Medical teams relocating from  Overdale.  The  premises  are  being  used constructively  to  avoid  additional  cost  to  the taxpayer.

22

The Covid-19 Bus Contract is a new programme in the Government Plan 2021-24 which seeks approval for additional revenue funding of £2m in 2021 to subsidise the bus operator to enable them to break-even due to the significant impact on bus ridership resulting from the impact of the pandemic.

Since early March 2020, the effect on the bus service of the Covid-19 outbreak and Government Emergency  Regulations  has  been  two-fold: reduced demand as a result of the need to restrict the numbers of people in close proximity to one another,  and  a  downturn  in  economic  activity throughout  the  island  arising  from  businesses suspending operations, office staff working from home, schools and leisure facilities closing, tourist volumes falling away. These double impacts are placing  acute  pressure  on  the  bus  network  as passenger numbers fall

However,  the  public  bus  service  remains  a strategically important service, it contributes to community  wellbeing,  being  a  vital  means  of travel for many people who do not have access to personal  transport.   It  is  a  vital  resource  for keeping the Island's community moving and able to  access  shops,  Government  services  such  as Health and Education and the workplace.

It  contributes  to  the  aims  of  the  sustainable transport  policy,  providing  both  environmental and social benefits and reducing congestion on the roads and in public car parks.

The bus service also provides employment and training opportunities for in excess of 140 staff, including local transport management training.

The funding is to be drawn down upon it required, without this significant changes and reductions in services  would  be  required,  and  redundancies would have to be made. This would reduce the service below 2013 levels and there could be a

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"spiral"  effect  whereby  the  levels  of  service reduce desirability of travel, leading to a further reduction in income.

The objectives of the funding are to:

1 – ensure a bus service remains in service that is capable  of  servicing  routes  at  frequencies  that means it remains a viable alternative to the car, meeting the aims  of the Sustainable Transport Plan and environmental goals for the future

2 – maintain public confidence in the bus service to ensure that the service provided is capable of being scaled back up to pre-covid-19 levels as demand increases

3- provide essential transport for those that rely on the service, including the elderly, school children and  commuters,  meeting  the  needs  of  those particular groups.

23

The bus operator is a social enterprise and has returned a profit share to Government of in excess of £1.4m in the last five years, however due to the impact on its commercial operations it is not envisaged that there will be profit share return for the period April 2020 – March 2021 and it will depend on Covid-19 restrictions in place in any given financial year and the levels of ridership as to whether this will be the case for future Government Plans.

The  position  will  be  kept  under  review  and appropriate measures will be put in place to reduce costs and keep the level of support required within reasonable levels.

It  is  not  expected  that  a  profit  share  will  be returned in relation to 2020-21 as stated.

24

It is not entirely clear how the 1.4m profit share returned from the bus operator to Government has been spent and that prior to 2020 will have been consumed within the year and included within the revenue income and expenditure of the IHE Department.

Due to the Government accounting policies (no ring fencing of funds) it is not possible to directly attribute costs to income and the budget line for income in the departmental accounts is offset by a number of revenue expenditure items including concessionary fares, STP projects and initiatives and support for bus management, research and development.

WQ.384/2019 and WQ.386/2019 provide further detail

25

The business case contained within the Government Plan 2021-24 was unclear as to what the proposed funding would be spent on. It was identified during

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the Panel's review that the funding will cover various water management initiatives.

26

The funding bid for Marine Resources Management proposes to fund a vessel monitoring system, in addition to the recruitment and retention of two fisheries officers, in response to foreseeable implications related to Brexit.

This is correct.

27

Government currently utilises independent research through third party organisations and university bursaries in relation to Marine Resources matters, although the Minister advised there is a move to internalise this work where possible.

Some work can be done "in house" but there will always be specialisms that require assistance from external agencies.

28

Spend reductions in relation to the maintenance and upkeep of condition of the government's property estate are likely to impact on the prioritisation of sites for maintenance and repair and this could lead to maintenance being delayed on some sites which may be deemed less or a pressing priority for repair.

The backlog maintenance funding being released is partly offset by capital allocations in the HCS budget and the "hub and spoke" model for hard facilities  management  and  maintenance  should introduce efficiencies by adopting the OneGov model for service delivery.

29

There are no efficiencies assigned to the Minister for the Environment, only a joint efficiency with the Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and culture in relation to the Target Operating Model for the Infrastructure, Housing and Environment Department.

Agreed.

30

The £25k spend reduction by deferring policy development under the Housing Policy Development Board is not considered to have an impact on the overall housing programme.

The  £25K  reduction  (rebalancing)  is  not considered  to  have  an  impact  on  the  overall housing programme.

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

1

The Chief Minister, together with the newly appointed Minister for Children and Housing, should publish the findings and recommendations of the Housing Policy Development Board's report as soon as practical.

CM / MC H

Accept

The  report  of  the  Housing  Policy Development  Board  has  been submitted to the Chief Minister for his consideration and will be published in due course.

March 2021

2

The Minister for Children and Housing should ensure, going forward, that engagement and consultation with external stakeholders (such as social housing providers and private landlords) happens in the early stages of policy development in order to provide valuable contributions to the delivery of policy outcomes.

MC H

Accept

Minister  for  Children  and  Housing will  continue  to  ensure  that government  officers  consult  with external stakeholders as necessary at the most appropriate stage of policy development.  Stakeholder engagement  features  throughout  a project and is detailed in the Business cases.

I would like to thank officers, who despite  the  challenges  Covid-19 brought,  ensured  that  Stakeholder engagement was maintained.

N/A

3

The Minister for the Environment and the Minister for Economic Development, Tourism Sport and Culture should, by the end of Q1 2021, put in place suitable protocols to ensure a more collaborative approach to their involvement in the Jersey National Park project and in the support extended to the Jersey National Park.

ME NV / ME DT SC

Accept

Collaboration on the JNP in Q1 2021 is enhanced through the requirement to develop a revised Rural Economy Strategy  (RES),  for  introduction  in 2022. Officers of both departments are currently  engaged  in  updating  the framework for JNP policy which is contained in the RES.

Ongoing

4

The Minister for Infrastructure should, by

MI NF

Accept

The foul sewerage system is coping well apart from in heavy rainfall high water  table  areas.  There  is  now  an

End of Q1 21

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

end of Q1 2021, provide the Panel will a detailed analysis on how the foul sewerage system together with the surface water system is coping with demand, as well as further details on the rationale for the decrease in funding in this area, given projections of growing population size.

annual  ongoing  CCTV  survey contract  to  determine  areas  which need repairs or relining. A number of relining projects have been carried out in  2020  and this  will  continue  into 2021.

The new sewage treatment works due in operation early 2023 will allow for the Islands increasing population.

Flow meters are being installed in the major  surface  water  systems  in  the island.  This  will  inform  a  climate change  study  and  surface  water management  plan.  This  will  enable IHE  to  determine  what  funding  is required  for  future  surface  water management  giving  the  changing climatic conditions.

5

Given the extensive crossover between the two remits of Infrastructure and Environment, both Ministers should put in place suitable protocols to ensure more joined up working, with a greater emphasis on breaking down silos and adopting a more collaborative approach. Both Ministers should report back to the Panel by the end of Q1 2021 with an action plan as to how this will be achieved going forward.

ME NV / MI NF

Reject

The Director General for IHE meets weekly  with  the  Minister  for Infrastructure,  Minister  for  the Environment,  Minister  for  Children and Housing, and also the Assistant Minister  for  EDTSC  with responsibility for Sport. In this role, he ensures cross portfolio briefing occurs on  a  weekly  basis  on  IHE  issues between  ministries.  As  mentioned previously  in  the  response,  in  the Minister for the Environment's view the  separation  of  ministerial responsibility  inherent  in  IHE  is unduly  complicated  and  should  be reviewed.

Not applicable.

6

The Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and Culture should clearly outline, in writing, the reasons and potential detrimental effects of the cut in funding to the Elizabeth Castle capital

ME DT SC

Not applicab le

This  has  been  superseded  by  the amendment to the Government Plan.

Not applicable

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

programme in the Government Plan 2021- 24 to both the Panel and Jersey Heritage before the end of December 2020.

7

The Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and Culture should investigate other possible sources of funding to facilitate the refurbishment project and inform both the Panel and Jersey Heritage, in writing, of any such outcome before the end of Q2 2021.

ME DT SC

Not applicab le

This  has  been  superseded  by  the amendment to the Government Plan.

Not applicable

8

The Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and Culture should, without delay, ensure that suitable protocols are put in place to ensure open lines of communication with Jersey Heritage, as well as all key stakeholders, to ensure proper engagement and consultation is carried out.

ME DT SC

Agreed

This  will be  addressed  by  the  new Assistant Minister, who was formally confirmed  on  8th  December  2020, with the recently recruited new sector lead, once they are in post, together with the existing officer.

Ongoing

9

The Chief Minister should, by end of Q4 2020, provide an explanation as to the rationale for the £10k reduction in funds from what was anticipated in the 2020 Government Plan to what is being requested now. Further consideration should also be given as to how, in

CM

N/A

The  conversion  of  the  magistrate's court is a non-ministerial project and the  amount  included  in  the Government  Plan  represents  the costings provided to the Government by  the  relevant  department.  In  this case, it is understood that £10k was spent on the project in 2020, with the remaining budget of £440k deferred to 2021. There is therefore no reduction in  budget.  Further  questions  on  the project and associated budget would

N/A

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

future Government Plans, the figures can be provided with clear explanation as why they might differ from previous year's projections.

need  to  be  directed  to  the  Judicial Greffe.

10

The Minister for Infrastructure should provide the Panel, by the end of Q4 2020, with further information as to how the proposed funds have been calculated and determined given that the outcome of the prefeasibility and the future use for the Rouge Bouillon site is unknown.

MI NF

Accept

The  funds  were  bid  for  by  other departments and whilst in due course the Estate Strategy and the One Gov approach to use of the estate will allow a coordinated view of the future of strategically  important  sites,  at  the moment this is not possible

N/A

11

The Minister for Infrastructure should ensure that further detail be provided in future Government Plans in relation to the distribution of funds across the Fleet Management programme.

MI NF

Accept

Noted, more detail will be provided in the next Government Plan

To be provided in GP 2022-25

12

The Minister for Infrastructure should, by the end of Q1 2021, provide further information to the Panel regarding the potential impact the lack of sufficient funds is likely to have on the allocation of funding for the Jersey Car Parking Fund in future Government Plan bids.

MI NF

Noted

End Q1 21

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

13

The Minister for Infrastructure should ensure that further information is provided in the next Government Plan Progress Review update, as well as any future Government Plans, as to how 28-30 The Parade will be utilised and how the arrangements will provide the best value for money.

MI NF

Accept

Noted

To be provided in GP 2022-25

14

The Minister for Infrastructure should ensure that going forward any future profit share returned to Government under the bus contract is, for transparency, clearly accounted for in terms of demonstrating how this money is invested back into sustainable transport initiatives for the benefit of the island. Furthermore, the Minister should ensure there is greater transparency surrounding the sum returned by the bus operator to its UK parent company so that a clear distinction can be made between what is reinvested for the benefit of the island and what sum is distributed out of the island back to the parent company in the

UK.

MI NF

Noted

The income from the profit share is paid  into  the  Transport  revenue budgets,  which  is  responsible  for delivering the activities within States Sustainable Transport Policy. It is not possible to disaggregate the funding contribution  into  individual initiatives, to try to do so would be artificial  and  be  unlikely  to  be representative,  particularly  as  many projects  have  multiple  funding sources such as Planning Obligation Agreements and run over more than one year.

N/A

15

The Council of Ministers should ensure that all

Co M

Reject

Summary  information  is  already provided in Annex to the Government

N/A

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

future Government Plan bids include detailed information of what the funding is intended to cover, why the funding is needed and a breakdown of all associated costs. This should be rolled out in time for the Government Plan 2022.

Plan  and  detailed  information  is available to Scrutiny in the detailed Business Cases. However, given the scale and complexity of the Business Cases and, in some cases, the sensitive or commercial information contained in Business  Cases, it  would  not  be reasonable or practical to put it into the Government Plan document.

16

The Minister for the Environment should seek to ensure going forward that a wide variety of reputable, independent research on marine resources related matters is drawn upon by Government, and given the implications arising from Brexit, endeavour to find ways to collaborate and engage with voluntary and third sector organisations to form mutually beneficial partnerships and new, innovative ways of

working.

ME NV

Accept

Existing  research  programmes  and new  ones  driven  by  external influences  will  be  sought  from  the most  reputable  providers  to  ensure that sound science  underpins  policy and legislative decision making. In many  instances  partnership  working will assist in delivering local datasets which  will  form  the  basis  of  this research. Brexit and implementation of  the  TCA  agreement  on  fishing requires  substantial  additional investment in scientific resources,

Throughout 2021 and the government plan period dependent on research required.

17

The Minister for the Environment should seek to ensure that, now and post-Brexit, suitable engagement and support is extended to the fishing industry, given the significant implications this will inevitably have for the industry.

ME NV

Accept

Engagement with and support to the fishing  industry  is  currently  in  the spotlight. Although the provision of such support is not within the Minister for the Environment's responsibility, the  underpinning  workstreams  and liaisons with industry and government departments  alike  are  being undertaken  by  officers.  Since  the publication of the Government Plan, the Minister for the Environment is seeking  admin,  financial,  and infrastructure support for fishing and aquaculture. It is the Minister's view that political responsibility for these

Quarter 1 2021 and ongoing

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

resources  should  sit  within  their portfolio.