The States agreed earlier this month that a common policy on population should be developed by the Council of Ministers and that ‘action should be taken to provide more responsive controls on the number of migrants who acquire the right to settle permanently in Jersey’.
A timetable for bringing in this policy has been outlined by Chief Minister John Le Fondré in a report prepared for States Members, who will discuss the policy’s development during an in-committee debate during this week’s States sitting. An in-committee debate is one where there is no vote.
Evidence of the impact of Brexit and Covid will be reviewed in April and May, the Chief Minister said in the report. A public consultation is due to take place through July and August, with the policy expected to be lodged in October and debated in December.
The report also stated that initial 2021 Census results would be published in the first quarter of 2022, while further detailed census reports will be produced through 2022.
During this week’s debate, Members will be given the opportunity to ‘describe their vision for Jersey’ over the next five, ten and 20 years and ‘how a common population policy would help to achieve that aim’, according to the report.
Once approved, the common population policy will be reviewed and updated annually.
