EIGHT months before the next election, the political pace is clearly beginning to quicken.
On Wednesday evening, more than 100 people braved the driving rain and wind to attend the launch not of a political party but of a “movement” called Value Jersey.
Wharf Street nightspot The Sundown was the place: the venue lit in the purple hue of the new political grouping – which says it will devise an evidence-based manifesto which independent candidates can align themselves to.
There was a healthy crowd of supporters and observers, including individuals considering throwing their hat into the ring next year.
Several curious States Members were among the throng, including Deputies Sam Mézec, Alex Curtis, Philip Ozouf and Tom Coles.
The mood was convivial: people unified by the belief that Jersey can do better, even if they differ on the route to get there.
The evening’s compère – who also had the job to set out Value Jersey’s stall – was Samantha Gleave, the movement’s director of comms.
Despite Jersey’s strong sense of community and her own deep affinity for the Island, the Island was divided, increasingly unaffordable and people were leaving, she said.
“We need evidence, not ideology,” she added, in order to create a manifesto that any candidate in next year’s election can use.
“We do have ideas, but they need to be based on evidence,” she said, before inviting the audience to submit their own.
Then, one by one, speakers took to the stage, each offering a few minutes of their thoughts and observations.
First, we had student Gabriel Raimondo, representing an age group in Jersey which has traditionally found better things to do on election day or had not realised it was on.
He said that many of his friends had no plans to stay in Jersey; the Island was expensive, and it was dying. “Now is the time to draw a line in the sand,” he said.
Economist Dr Michael Oliver was next, who referred to the late Colin Powell’s analogy that Jersey was a three-legged stool made up of finance, tourism and agriculture. With the decline of the last two and the contribution of finance “starting to be shaky”, he said that the government was now “propping up an unstable stool”.
Jersey Post manager and history guide Toby Clyde-Smith shared a story of his father’s near-death after having a heart attack just outside St Malo. However, because of the world-leading cardiology unit there, his dad survived; something that Mr Clyde-Smith said would not have happened in Jersey.
He added that the French heart unit has emailed the Island health authorities in Jersey 50 times to offer their services, but it had never received a reply.
Up next was child psychologist Victoria Li, who said that young people in Jersey were growing up “anxious, uncertain and disempowered” despite the government spending more on education per student than jurisdictions such as Finland and Singapore.
She said teachers were doing “extraordinary work in ordinary conditions” and Jersey needed to value its talent more.
Department store owner and former States Member Gerald Voisin argued that Jersey had lost its competitive edge and needed to unlock its entrepreneurial spirit, before former hospital consultant Dr David Ng said he had seen Jersey’s health system decline over the past 14 years because of “dithering” and “procrastinating” politicians, and “civil servants with clipboards” rather than front-line professionals.
Lecturer and legal expert Professor Claire de Than called for a skills audit that would allow Jersey to make the most of local talent rather than rely on external consultants.
Investment strategist Peter Lucas said Jersey’s economy had become dependent on public spending. The Island now needed a full review of public spending, he said. A smaller, smarter government would help to “free up enterprise” and “reward work and aspiration”.
Businessman and former election candidate Phil Romeril said that Value Jersey would develop a “comprehensive manifesto” and would work with anyone wanting to input their own ideas.
Lastly, another former candidate, Sophie Reid, talked about her own journey in founding a hairdressing business, adding that the positive ideas that Islanders shared with her every week were not reflected in the States Assembly.
After the final speech, the gathered ensemble mingled to share thoughts.
Deputy Sam Mézec told your correspondent that he always welcomed political debate and fresh ideas, but he was a party man at heart, so movements were not for him.
He also wondered how States Members aligning themselves to Value Jersey policies would be kept in line, or “whipped” to use the rather violent Westminster vernacular.
Being a venue known for live music, singers then took to the stage. With so much purple, and so much rain, one may have half-expected to see a Prince tribute act, but instead a guitarist singing decent covers of Oasis and other well-known anthems began to play.
If Deputy Mézec was tempted to come on stage to strum an impromptu version of The Internationale, he resisted.
