It emerged yesterday that Assistant Chief Minister Philip Ozouf authorised the use of public funds to pay for the flight for Estonian Ambassador Lauri Bambus and three colleagues to London on the morning of 18 November after their British Airways flight the previous evening was cancelled.
The trip cost £4,050, but Senator Ozouf has said that the actual cost to the taxpayer would be greatly reduced and would in fact cost up to £2,500.
Yesterday, Digital Jersey’s chief executive Tony Moretta said it was in Jersey’s interest to forge a strong relationship with Estonia, which is one of the world’s leading digital jurisdictions. The country, which is helping Jersey to develop its eGov programme, is also due to take over the rotating EU presidency in 2017.
While some have defended Senator Ozouf’s decision to pay for the private jet, others have questioned the move. Deputy Andrew Lewis, chairman of the States spending watchdog the Public Accounts Committee, said: ‘I find it very difficult to see how this expense can possibly be justified’.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Ian Gorst has also supported the decision to charter a private jet out of Jersey so that a visiting dignitary did not miss any appointments.
Full reports in Thursday’s JEP.
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