THE Economic Development Minister has blamed out-of-context reporting for a political storm that has blown up in the wake of an event for business leaders earlier this week.
Deputy Gerald Voisin was one of four ministers to attend the lunch briefing organised by the Institute of Directors, fielding questions about economic growth.
Declaring a figure of 3% to be a “healthy” target for annual growth at which to aim, Deputy Voisin said this would require “difficult decisions”, citing workers’ rights as an area that might have to be a lower priority if growth ambitions were to be achieved.
“It’s very nice to be able to give workers greater rights but if it’s doing that at the cost of economic growth, then I think it has to take second place for the time being,” he was reported as having said by the BBC.
The minister’s comments sparked an angry backlash from the co-leaders of Reform Jersey, which has a seven-strong contingent of Deputies in the States Assembly.
Deputies Lyndsay Feltham and Montfort Tadier said: We fundamentally reject the suggestion that protecting workers and growing our economy are competing objectives – the minister is wrong to seek to pit, once again, the interests of workers against the interests of the wider economy.”
The co-leaders cited the agenda of Value Jersey which, while it is officially categorised as a political movement, rather than a registered party, achieved a similar level of representation to Reform after votes in June’s election were counted.
They added: “The Value Jersey agenda is becoming increasingly clear with several of their official members holding key positions of influence in the Council of Ministers.
“What we are seeing is a hijacking of government policy that seeks to put business interests in tension with workers’ rights. We do not accept this divisive juxtaposition of pitting workers’ rights against employers.”
In a statement issued by the government’s Communications Unit, Deputy Voisin said: “I would like to clarify my remarks which I believe have been reported without proper context by the BBC.
“I want to make clear that I do not believe economic growth should ever come at the expense of workers’ rights. These are fundamental protections and I am not proposing a reduction in existing workers’ rights.
“This is not a binary choice between economic growth and workers’ rights – a strong economy should provide good, secure employment, fair treatment and opportunities for people to progress, and workers’ rights are a vital part of that.
“My comments were about the lack of growth Jersey has experienced in recent years and how the government needs to find the right balance when it considers adding new regulations to the statute book.
“Our aim should be to create the conditions in which businesses can grow and employ more people, while ensuring workers are properly protected and treated fairly.”
Deputy Voisin attracted previous controversy in August when he argued in a letter to the JEP that the Island’s statutory minimum wage was “strangling the economy” and driving up inflation. This prompted a swift rebuttal from Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham, who warned the minister about discussing policy issues with colleagues prior to airing his views in the media.
