Take away some of the idiosyncratic Island titles and what we have been left with is essentially an off-the-peg version of UK local government, based on the same kind of procedures that might be found in any large town in England.
The newish system of ministerial government, allied to more formal scrutiny panels and auditing processes and greater devolved powers for unelected officials, will have been in place for nine years by the time this autumn’s elections are over. That is more than long enough to take a view on how well it has worked and the majority verdict, while perhaps not quite as damning as that of Deputy Gerard Baudains, who has memorably likened it to trying to win a Formula One race in a hire car, is likely to be that it leaves much to be desired.
In a nutshell, ministerial government does not work well without well-established party politics, which Jersey does not have, or freedom of information legislation, which is still stuck in the works more than eight years after the first Chief Minister was elected. Few, if any, would argue that the States have become more efficient since its introduction and no one, surely, would try to claim that they have become more accountable.
That is why Deputy Baudains’ proposal that the old committee system of government should be re-examined is a sensible and timely one. Its critics accused it, with justification, of working too slowly but, in a small community which nevertheless enjoys autonomous law-making, tax-raising powers, there was also much to recommend a system which was consensual rather than confrontative, pooled its wisdom, had its own scrutiny built in, gave every States Members a role and connected the voter more directly to the decision-making process.
The Privileges and Procedures Committee are arrogantly opposing the public consultation on the subject demanded by Deputy Baudains. They are wrong to do so and should be instructed by the States to get on with it. There is no likelihood of the committee system making a full-scale comeback but every reason to start looking for some hybrid solution, tailored to Jersey’s unique needs, which combines the best elements of the old system and the new.
