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The Chamber’s action plan could do with a bit more thought
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The chamber is now doing all it can to clearly set out the economic problems facing the Island and to encourage government to come up with a medium to long-term plan, so that we don’t get caught out again.
Of course, it’s a bit late to worry about the current recession. All we can do now is apply copious amounts of sticking plaster. But our current problems could be minuscule compared to what might be around the corner, so it would be wise to adopt a Boy Scout approach.
Chamber’s recently published document ‘Plan B – Working together for a successful economy’ is a useful summary of our current position, including our strengths and our weaknesses and what we can do to make one greater than the other. If I had to be critical of it – and I do – I would have to say that it only scratches the surface.
The aim, obviously, was to highlight some broad issues, but an organisation like chamber should have the resources to put together a more detailed critique of the economy and, perhaps, suggest their own Plan B. They have the advantage of being close to business and to businessmen.
Unfortunately, like all organisations, it’s sometimes difficult to reach a consensus. The chamber is a pretty broad church and what one member criticises as red tape, could be another member’s vital safeguard.
There’s never going to be universal agreement, but perhaps chamber could be a bit clearer about what they think the Island needs as opposed to what it doesn’t need.
It’s true that the chamber document lists ten actions they would like to see taken. The problem is that many of them are contradictory and not fully thought through, and quite a few are already in train.
For example, the chamber might be surprised to learn that when I read the document I thought that my long-held position had been vindicated. I have always thought that it was government that would need to get us out of any economic mess, and that you can’t rely on private businesses to do it for you. The economy is too important to be left to businessmen, is the way I put it.
That’s a long way from the view expressed by a previous chamber president who often said that all businessmen needed was for government to get out of the way. Government didn’t need to do anything other than provide a conducive environment for businesses to flourish.
Whoever wrote the ten action points in chamber’s Plan B document, obviously doesn’t subscribe to that view. Item number one is a complete audit of the States £3.5billion in net assets because ‘consideration needs to be given to changing the way we use those assets, with the objective of releasing finance,’ the document says. Obviously the intention is to use this to finance recovery and invest in the economic future of the Island, which I totally agree with, but it’s a long way from traditional chamber dogma that government needs to get out of the way. The government is now going to have to save the economy.
The second action point is to invest in new/updated infrastructure such as the Gigabit Jersey project which taxpayers will help finance to the tune of £19m. Once again, this is totally reasonable and a good plan, although not without its downside.
Superfast broadband for every household and business in the Island could well transform the economy, or at least it could create a lot of new business opportunities. It could also be enormously wasteful, and no one has yet had the temerity to suggest that perhaps the £19m could be invested elsewhere to better effect.
Certainly chamber has been silent on the subject as they have been on the impact this could have on competition in the telecoms sector. Perhaps competition is no longer the driving force in the economy as it was once said to be by States leaders and others.
The third action point would be to develop an enterprise zone, but the chamber doesn’t spell out how this would work and who would come.
Similarly there are no details about the fourth action point – financial incentives for businesses to expand. If the Chamber of Commerce don’t know what would work, who does?
The fifth action point is to share resources with Guernsey, another ‘no brainer’. Chamber even suggests that the islands could work together to develop the tidal energy potential off Alderney. Alderney, who obviously believe that it’s their resource, are already working on it.
The sixth action point is to ‘review the planning process to make sure that it assists, rather than hinders economic stimulation’. I think this is being looked at, although of course planning is not just about ‘economic stimulation’.
The fast tracking of some laws is the seventh action point, which is also perfectly reasonable but will require more law drafting resources which, I suspect, not many chamber members would consider a vital, front line public service.
The eighth action point is the hoary old chestnut of reviewing all public services to see whether they could be better performed by the private sector. Even I’m getting bored with pointing out that if any private company wants to take on a public service, I’m sure that the States would be absolutely delighted. Unfortunately no one has come up with any significant function that would be better off in the for-profit sector.
Action point nine merely warns us that there is a demographic problem looming, if we needed such a reminder. However they are right to say that pension choices need to be much wider than they are, but that applies to most personal financial services in Jersey.
The final action point is to ‘benchmark the bureaucracy around doing business in Jersey compared to our key competitor jurisdictions’. Jersey should come out top in the benchmark, although the chamber doesn’t say whether they mean top jurisdiction for the safeguards and protections required, or top for having the least amount of bureaucracy, but I can guess.
The document concludes with chamber imploring us not to allow cynicism, fear and inflexibility deflect us from change. Unfortunately it then goes on to destroy their good messages by pointing out that when they say change, they don’t mean it to apply to businesses. They certainly don’t want to change.
They don’t want to pay more taxes, because that would make them less competitive.So that’s what Plan B is really all about. It’s the simple message again of no more tax; the solution has to be found elsewhere. If that doesn’t constitute cynicism, fear and inflexibility, I don’t know what does.
Peter Body is the editor of Business Brief magazine
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