Responding to the letter from chief operating officer John Hamon, which was exclusively published in yesterday’s JEP, Chief Minister John Le Fondré said he could not comment on the personal opinions expressed in the document.
Those opinions included that Jersey’s government is dictatorial in nature, unsustainable and lacking integrity. However, the Chief Minister wished Mr Hamon – who has worked in the public sector for more than 30 years – well and thanked him for his services.
And Senator Le Fondré confirmed that the chairman of Andium’s board, former Chief Minister Frank Walker, has been given notice and will leave the post he has held since July 2017 at the end of the month.
The Chief Minister said he would not comment further on scrutiny of Mr Hamon’s pay until a review of what board members are paid being conducted by the Comptroller and Auditor General was published.
In the letter to fellow board members which was passed to the JEP, Mr Hamon said the government had ‘lost its way’ and had ‘perhaps a more sinister side’.
He said a culture of fear prevented others from speaking out or questioning decisions for fear of recrimination.
And he claimed that the States-owned housing provider was being prevented from getting on with its important work by the government, with its business plan, accounts, loans, funding strategy and other important decisions being held up.
Mr Hamon also said that his salary had been unfairly scrutinised, particularly by politicians and civil servants, which had led to five years of uncertainty and threats – the last 9½ months of which he described as ‘absolutely intolerable’.
In response to the publication of the letter, Senator Le Fondré said: ‘Andium Homes is 100% owned by the government, which, as the sole guarantor, has responsibility for ensuring that the company operates with the utmost integrity and compliance with its memorandum of understanding with the government.
‘We have been in discussion with the board of Andium Homes for a number of months over some issues which have emerged over the governance and levels of remuneration in the company.
‘The existing chair, Frank Walker, had already been extended beyond his appointed term, and we therefore gave him notice in September. We are grateful to Mr Walker for his contribution and commitment to Andium in recent years.’
The statement from the Chief Minister added: ‘We are working up arrangements and options to fill the board vacancies and will be discussing these with the remaining board. These arrangements will enable the board to carry out a full recruitment process in the meantime and will help to bring this issue to a conclusion.
‘We regret the decision of the finance director and chief operating officer to resign, but we thank him for his services and wish him well. We will not comment on the personal opinions that he expressed in his letter at this time.
‘The Comptroller and Auditor General is due to publish a report into the remuneration of boards, and it is appropriate that we await that report before commenting further on these matters.’
