THE government is “not in the business of borrowing more than [it] absolutely has to”, the Treasury Minister has said – despite plans to increase the Island’s debt to record levels in the proposed Budget.
Deputy Elaine Miller told the States Assembly that the Council of Ministers “would rather not” borrow, but if they decide to do so “it will be done carefully and in a very considered manner”.
It comes a mere few weeks before States Members debate the 2026-2029 Budget proposals, which include a £43m loan to fund the first phase of the regeneration of Fort Regent.
If approved, it will bring Jersey’s total borrowing bill to over £1 billion.
Responding to a question about what she considers to be a “sustainable level of borrowing” by Deputy Hilary Jeune, Deputy Millar stressed that decisions to borrow were not to fund day-to-day spending.
“If we do have to borrow for some projects, we will do but we will do it in a very careful and measured way,” she said.
Deputy Millar then sought to remind her fellow States Members that Jersey’s historically low borrowing rate remains “very much lower than many other countries in the world”, including the UK.
“There is always a place for borrowing. We would rather not, but it will be done carefully and in a very considered manner,” she added.
“Any time we do borrow, it will be with a clear repayment plan that we know will work and that we know we can afford.”
