BUDGET plans by the Council of Ministers remained on track following the opening stages of the debate that will set the Island’s financial course for the next four years.
Introducing the main proposition yesterday morning, Treasury Minister Elaine Millar said: “This Budget is not only a financial plan for the coming year, but also provides a clear and sustainable roadmap for the next two years, focusing on addressing the most pressing needs while delivering results for Islanders.
“We always want to deliver for the Islanders we serve, but a good Budget will also ensure that proposals are affordable, and that the choices made support the long-term sustainability of the Island, its economy and its finances.”
The proposed Budget includes the spending of £1.2 billion on services, £710m on the Island’s new healthcare facilities, a further £31m investment in Health, £93m in buildings and infrastructure and £20m to support businesses and charities through the transition to the living wage.
Deputy Millar added: “The 2025 Budget is a robust, forward-looking financial plan that places Islanders at the heart of our decision-making. It balances investment with prudence, growth with sustainability and action.
“By investing in our island, supporting our community, and preserving our resources, this budget lays the foundation for a resilient and prosperous Jersey.”
Following the Treasury Minister’s introductory speech, backbench politicians embarked on a series of attempts to amend the government’s proposals.
A total of 29 amendments had been put forward, although two were later withdrawn and seven accepted by the Council of Ministers, leaving 20 to be debated.
Stamp duty ‘holiday’
Deputy Philip Ozouf proposed a one-year “holiday” from stamp duty across 2025 for properties valued at up to £700,000, along with a reduced rate for those valued between this figure and £1.2 million.
Arguing that his plans were “targeted, timely and temporary”, Deputy Ozouf said it was necessary to stimulate the housing market, which was currently leaving individuals across the entire purchasing chain, as well as the construction industry, suffering.
Education Minister Rob Ward said the move would cost £10.5m in lost revenue, without explaining how this shortfall would be covered.
“There’s no evidence for this, just hearsay and hope,” he said. Housing Minister Sam Mézec also criticised what he described as “a completely uncosted tax break which would lead to higher prices and abolish the advantages enjoyed by first-time buyers”.
Deputy Ozouf persuaded just six Members to support him, with 36 votes cast against his proposal and one abstention.
A second amendment, also lodged by Deputy Ozouf, would have stripped out a clause in the Budget to end the Stamp Duty surcharge imposed on buy-to-let investors.
Deputy Ozouf narrowly lost the vote, with 23 voting pour and 24 voting contre.
He argued that the measure would encourage investment in the housing market.
But Reform Deputies Carina Alves and Rob Ward said that the measure would have put young Islanders at a disadvantage.
“It just feels very wrong that we are almost encouraging investment buyers,” Deputy Alves said.
Medicinal cannabis
Yesterday afternoon, States Members discussed a proposal, also from Deputy Ozouf, aiming to prevent agricultural loans from being used to cultivate medicinal cannabis.
Members backed an amendment to Deputy Ozouf’s amendment from Deputy Hilary Jeune by 27 votes to 18 which sought to clarify that the original amendment “does not make a distinction between the cultivation of cannabis for medicinal purposes and the cultivation of industrial hemp”.
“Given the Island’s long history of hemp cultivation, the known benefits to the environment and the many potential by-products of industrial hemp, the exclusion of hemp cultivation from the agricultural loans scheme would be detrimental to Jersey’s traditional agricultural sector,” the report accompanying her amendment read.
Deputy Jeune said the lack of distinction was “inaccurate and quite frankly, I think, lazy” during the debate, adding that hemp had long been a part of Jersey’s culture, for instance through the production of hemp ropes.
Deputy Montfort Tadier said that States Members seemed to be acting on “moralistic” grounds, with no reason to exclude cannabis from the definition of agriculture.
Politicians continued to debate a government amendment to Deputy Ozouf’s amendment attempting to reduce funds available through the agricultural loans scheme for the cultivation of cannabis to 10% of total funding, with no loan given out being higher than £250,000 for this purpose.
Later in the debate, the sitting was adjourned, initially for ten minutes, for Deputy Bailiff Robert MacRae to consider whether the amendments by Deputy Jeune and the Council of Ministers could both be adopted. Returning to the Chamber after 25 minutes, Mr Macrae ruled that the later amendment by ministers should fall, prompting puzzlement from several Members and criticism by Deputy Tadier that the situation was, he said, a “debacle”.
After Deputy Ozouf had summed up, delivering what was his eighth and final speech of the day, Members voted on his amendment, which – like the previous two – was defeated. A total of 18 Members voted in favour, with 25 against and three abstentions. The Budget debate was then adjourned overnight.
See the print and online editions of the JEP for further coverage, including a parliamentary sketch.
