NEW rules around elections, changes to the law around reusable plastic bags and a call to allow members of the public to join Scrutiny panels are among the topics to be debated by politicians in the States Assembly this week.
The residency requirement for voting in elections will drop from two years to one if a proposal by Deputy Hilary Jeune is adopted.
The representative for St John, St Lawrence and Trinity cited the aim of her move as: “to strengthen democratic participation, ensure fairer representation, and bring Jersey’s electoral policies more in line with modern democratic values.”
In her accompanying report, Deputy Jeune added: “If someone has chosen to make Jersey their home and contributes to our Island – economically, socially, and culturally – they should have a say in how it’s run.”
The move comes as an amendment to a wider proposition by the Privileges and Procedures Committee which outs forward several changes to the way elections are run.
This includes allowing all prisoners to vote in elections – currently those serving sentences of four years or more are barred – as well as other changes around the way hustings are organised and earlier deadline for postal votes to accommodate the previously-agreed switch of polling day to a Sunday.
The committee will also bring back proposals regarding whether the electoral register should be available to candidates while canvassing, following concerns about safeguarding expressed at a previous sitting. PPC now proposes that candidates will have access once they have completed a declaration regarding data protection, but that there will also be an opt-out for those Islanders who do not wish to have their details included on the register provided to candidates.
Infrastructure Minister Andy Jehan will will propose that reusable plastic bags used for transactions between traders, or those supplied second-hand, should be exempt from the law providing for a minimum charge of 70p for these items. The minister’s move has been broadly supported by the Economic and International Affairs Scrutiny Panel.
Members are also set to debate a proposition by Deputy Moz Scott which would enable Scrutiny panels to include those who are not elected States Members within their make-up. The St Brelade representative also wants to raise the maximum number of ministers and assistant ministers, currently 21, to 25.
During the early stages of the hearing, due to start at 9.30am tomorrow, more than 20 oral questions will be posed on topics including tuna fishing, performance measures for airlines and ferry operators, medicinal cannabis and the West Park Bathing Pool.
Education Minister Rob Ward, Children’s Minister Richard Vibert and Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham will each face a 15-minute period of questions without notice.
