ASSISTANT Chief Minister Andy Jehan would have resigned rather than support ministers over the Health Advisory Board controversy, a disagreement that split the government earlier this month.
Speaking about the tensions between the collective responsibility of being a member of the government and standing by his own principles, the Constable said that although he would not have been happy to ‘walk away’, he would reluctantly have done so, rather than vote for a proposal he believed was deeply flawed.
Mr Jehan was one of 16 States Members – including Infrastructure Minister Tom Binet and his sister, Deputy Rose Binet, an Assistant Health Minister – who expressed their dissent publicly by voting against the government over the creation of the new board.
Ultimately, the proposal was adopted, with 28 Members voting in favour.
However, the Constable has spoken about the difficulty of reconciling his individual disagreement with the majority view within the government.
As well as being an Assistant Chief Minister, Mr Jehan is vice-chairman of the States Employment Board, a role which he acknowledged carried with it the presumption that he would adhere to the collective responsibility principles set out in the code of conduct and practice for ministers and assistant ministers.
‘It was not easy. It was incredibly hard because you are part of a team. I do think we’ve got to move forward but I did tell you [when I was elected] that I wouldn’t be a Trappist monk and hopefully I haven’t been,’ he said.
‘I did say in that debate that if that board proposal had come to the States Employment Board, I don’t think it would have got approval. I don’t want to look backwards. [What I said] was no surprise to my colleagues on the Council of Ministers because I told them.’
Mr Jehan emphasised that he supported the principle of the board but said he could not accept the notion of an advisory body which also had the power to direct, a distinction which he made in his speech in the Assembly.
‘I wouldn’t have been happy to walk away but I would have because I believe in what I said,’ he explained. ‘I just deal in facts and what I said in my speech was factually correct.
‘It’s tough because you don’t want to let your colleagues down. I’ve worked with [Chief Minister] Kristina [Moore] for over 12 years and we had some really challenging conversations. Thankfully, we’ve got a really mature relationship where we can agree to disagree. I let her down but I didn’t let myself down. On a personal level, it was really hard for both of us. But that’s behind us. If I didn’t think I was adding value, then I would have gone but I do think I can and that’s why I’m still here.’
Speaking of the Infrastructure Minister, who is leading the revised plans for the new hospital, Mr Jehan said he believed Deputy Tom Binet was ‘doing a great job’.
Although not referring specifically to the tensions between the minister and the Chief Minister – which emerged following the resignation of government chief executive Suzanne Wylie – Mr Jehan said that ‘a team that just agrees with each other every time is not a very good team’.
A campaigner for the reopening of Samarès rehabilitation ward – controversially temporarily closed ahead of the now-abandoned Our Hospital development – Mr Jehan said he had been following developments in the Health Department closely since then and that he had great confidence in the turnaround team working in the department.
‘I am really encouraged. The interim chief executive is first class, the finance guy is first class, they are all of a high calibre, so we have confidence that we can move forward but it’s a massive job and one that we mustn’t underestimate,’ he said.
