The official version of this document can be found via the PDF button.
The below content has been automatically generated from the original PDF and some formatting may have been lost, therefore it should not be relied upon to extract citations or propose amendments.
Dear Sirs,
I write with regard to the proposed new Super Constituencies to which I am wholly opposed. This Government appears to be hell bent on destroying this islands heritage with their insistence on calling themselves the 'Government of Jersey' when we are and always will be 'The STATES OF JERSEY'.
They now also seek to destroy the way our parochial system works and possibly also remove the post of Senator from the assembly.
This is nothing more than a power grab by the current Council of Ministers and the Constable of St Helier and, like many other locals, I abhor the suggestion that this is the way forward.
If they want reformation on the way the States of Jersey operate, please tell them to heed to these suggestions.
- Leave the system as it is, or reinstate the 4 senatorial posts which they previously got rid of. There should be people with an island wide mandate and it may be that the Senators are largely the people who should head different departments.
- Get rid of Ministerial government and 'Collective responsibility' it does not work in Jersey and stifles democracy.
- Return to a Committee system. This may mean that decisions take a little longer but they are usually the right decisions.
- Limited the role of Chief Minister to no more than 2 terms.
- Embrace honesty, transparency and responsibility. They are the backbone of democracy.
- Ensure that all Government quangos and covered under the FOI law as they should be. No more secrets.
- Undertake a thorough and independent investigation of all civil servants in the higher grades and terminate contracts if necessary. There appear to be a large number who are not capable of doing the jobs they were employed to do but we still pay them an obscene salary and pension. Why? This would not be tolerated in the private sector.
- Investigate the SOJ HR department and they way appointments are managed. This seems to still be running on the 'Old Boys Network' rather than finding a person best suited to a particular job.
- Instruct the Constables to take care of their Parishes and consult with their parishioners on how they feel about issues rather than just taking a salary and voting with the states members who have been lobbying in the background - currently the COM. All Constables should vote in accordance with the people they represent. Perhaps they need to be reminded that their salary is as a member of the States assembly and that, should they be removed from the assembly their income will disappear too.
- Ensure that Scrutiny are given ALL the documentation they require or ask for in good time and that information is not withheld or redacted. They are doing a valuable job but are being constantly hindered by the COM who clearly have their own agenda. This cannot be allowed to continue.
- Make all of these changes BEFORE the 2018 election.
I apologise for going off track but I really needed to get that off my chest. Like most islanders, I am sick to death of this current Government. I pity the folk who will be appointed in the next Government - hopefully it will not include any of the current incumbents - for they will have their work cut out trying to untangle the mess that the Gorst government has made.
Maybe we should have a 12) Ensure that any politician who knowingly covers/covered up a scandal which then affected the finance of the island of Jersey in a negative way, should be punishable by law and/or imprisoned if the offence is sufficiently bad or deemed to be corruption. This should hold for the entire lifetime of the individual and should be retrospective.
Finally, thank you Scrutiny for the thorough and excellent job that you all do. Kindest regards,
Jean Lelliott