THE politician leading a review into how effectively Jersey’s 12 parishes work together with central government has emphasised the goal of helping to modernise the historic system so it can continue serving the Island into the future.
The Government and Parishes Review Panel was launched in March with the intention of examining in detail how parishes interact with government and how effectively and efficiently community services are delivered.
Deputy Helen Miles, the panel chair, said the intention was to produce a report towards the end of 2025, based on feedback from a range of engagement.
“There’s no way that this would be an inspection of the parishes or something aiming to stop the parish system,” she said. “I went to the Constables’ Committee before we launched this to stress that this is an appreciative review.
“Parishes are of critical importance to the administration of Jersey, and have been for 800 years, and the parish system is one of the things that, without doubt, keeps Jersey a special place.
“But I think now the time has come to have a look at the functions that they are providing, how they’re funded, how they’re received, how they know that they’re doing a good job.
“If you think about all the things that the government have initiated over the years, like Future Jersey, their strategic priorities, putting children first, supporting the ageing population and the provision of housing – we wanted to understand how the parishes were interacting with those strategic objectives, and what role they are playing in delivering across those areas.”
Deputy Miles said it was the intention that the review would highlight areas in which the States Assembly could provide more support to the parishes.
“Unless the Assembly make decisions to protect and nurture the parish system, it could very well wither on the vine, she said. “Some of the work the parishes do is under-appreciated, for example the work of the Honorary Police in keeping Islanders safe and things running smoothly – if that didn’t happen, it would have a massive impact on the States Police.”
“The panel was aiming to extend the relevance of the parishes”, Deputy Miles added, with feedback from many Islanders that they were unsure what the role of their parish was, beyond the fact that it arranged for bins to be emptied, driving licences to be issued and rates collected.
As part of the review, a survey about rates will be carried out, starting in September.
“There has to be change for the rates law,” Deputy Miles said. “Nobody understands how the Islandwide rate works, the original reason has become lost.
“A lot of money is going from the parish into central government, but nobody’s quite clear where that money goes, so it’s about clarifying some of those issues.
“There should be a document on every parish’s website that explains how rates are calculated, and where the money goes, but at the moment every parish does something different.”
Other areas of focus include alcohol licensing, the issuing of licences for dogs, firearms and driving, and refuse collection and recycling.
Further information is available at statesassembly.je/scrutiny.
