It was like the first day of school. Everyone had made an extra effort to be on time

Okay, so maybe that was just me but there was no denying it, the 51 States Members who took their seats in the new House for the first time yesterday were having a good time, even the oldies who had been there, done it, seen it countless times before.

The media and those in the public gallery (which was suitably busy for the occasion) also seemed to enjoy themselves and there was a definite buzz of the kind not felt by the Chamber for, well, quite a while.

It was like the first day of school. Everyone had made an extra effort to be on time, extra care was paid when it came to pronouncing that they were ‘present’ in their best French accents, and most also managed a two-hour stint in the Chamber without a cup of tea, toilet break or whatever it is they do when they go out through those secret doors.

Perhaps the oath they had sworn that morning about attending States meetings whenever required was still ringing in their ears. If it was there is no doubt it will have faded to a dull buzz next week and will be pretty much non-existent this time next month.

But, and here goes the optimist in me again, yesterday did mark a change for Jersey politics.

We have 17 new States Members, a new Chief Minister and by the end of the week we will have a new Council of Ministers. Now is when real change, of the kind that makes things happen, can come about.

But the thing about change is that it can be a slippery little so and so. And it is a bit like a good piece of meat, you need to know how to treat it.

And in Chief Minister designate Ian Gorst I think we may have a man who will, perhaps with a little bit of time, develop into a pretty good chef.

He’s got the qualities – intelligence, honesty, integrity, morals and so on. He’s got the tools laid before him and now he just needs a little bit of time to get to grips with his kitchen.

But the most important quality that I believe will reap the rewards will be his approach. It isn’t radical but at the same time it isn’t confrontational and as a result will maintain stability and ensure greater cooperation among Members.

That isn’t to say things won’t happen. On the contrary, when this man believes something needs to be done he has shown that he will get on and do it, even if it is a tough one to see through. And that is quite refreshing.

Equally so is his ability to communicate with the media, the public and with colleagues. His predecessor wasn’t very good at that but so far so good with Senator Gorst – let’s hope he doesn’t prove me wrong.

My only reservation so far is what is now going to happen when it comes to the Treasury Minister’s job. With Senator Gorst out of the running, there appears to be slim pickings for the role and very few seem willing to give the serving Minister another bash under different leadership.

The Senator yesterday hinted that his nomination would be between Senator Ian Le Marquand (perhaps a trade-off for him pulling out of the Chief Minister race to prevent split votes?) and Deputy John Le Fondré. Hmmmm…

Sure, the Deputy could be a dark horse with his experience as an Assistant Finance Minister and accountancy background, but am I missing something with Senator Le Marquand beyond the fact that it would give him a bit more power (a David Cameron and Nick Clegg partnership perhaps?) and would pave the way for Deputy Jackie Hilton to take over at Home Affairs. We will just have to wait and see.

At this point it is also appropriate to pay tribute to the man who missed out yesterday, Senator Philip Bailhache. He was a gracious loser and handled himself well throughout the process, made an impressive speech and answered the questions with all the skill of a top flight baseball player as they were pitched at him from all angles.

But, ultimately he fell short. Not by much, yet at the same time completely.

He would have been a far more radical Chief Minister than Senator Gorst. He had plans to do things differently from the start in everything from the Chief Minister’s role on the States Employment Board (he expressed concerns over this and said he would likely delegate the role) to States reform, increasing the number of Assistant Ministers and pretty much anything else you could ask him about.

I rather had an image of a giant bulldozer forcing its way through the States Chamber with him at the helm, dragging away anything in its wake that wasn’t strong enough to survive the impact.

Of course, this may be over the top but it would have been kind of fun to have had some carnage, don’t you think? And it would have done some good, I’m sure.

But it could also have been dangerous. Instead, what we now have, most crucially of all, is the closest this Island has ever had to a political leader who can begin to get our elected representatives on the same page. A man who is neither outright establishment nor downtrodden backbencher. A man who won’t cause havoc but will make his presence known and a man who is sure to have a few surprises up his sleeve along the way.

There is a lot resting on the slim shoulders of this polite, Christian father-of-one from St Ouen, and I for one can’t wait to see how he squares up to the challenge.