By John Henwood
This month, we learned that we are paying 33% more for our food than we might expect to pay in the United Kingdom (JEP 7 June).
The immediate reaction of some might be to blame food retailers for making excessive profits, but the previous day the competition regulator confirmed that this was not the case.
Following that, Consumer Council chairman Carl Walker called for a budget food retailer. No doubt many would welcome Lidl or Aldi – and I’m sure they would come if they thought the venture would be profitable, and don’t think they haven’t looked at the possibility. If they did come, their prices would not be the same as in the UK for all the reasons associated with supplying a small island with a small population. And remember, we did have a budget store, Safeway, but it was unsuccessful.
Then came Nigel Hall’s sobering essay (JEP 10 June). He wrote in compelling terms about the dangers of being unprepared for the crisis which would affect our food supplies. High prices is one thing, but a failure of supply is an altogether bigger issue. And it’s not just food: how resilient are our energy supply and communications?
It’s 80 years since the major crisis, initiated by Germany marching into Poland, which caused our supplies to be cut. My parents, brother and sister lived here through the Occupation and understood the privations of such calamity. When you have suffered the consequences you don’t forget. This is what my father wrote in his diary in 1944: ‘We in the besieged fortress had our immediate outlook brightened by the forthcoming Red Cross parcels of food, which were issued to us. The parcels, which contained a net-weight of nearly ten pounds are wonderful and consist of tinned meats and fish, tinned butter and milk and other essentials. It is not too much to say that they have saved many lives.’
I grew up hearing stories of how hard it was and I remember queuing with my mother, her ration book in hand, on the corner of Minden Place and Bath Street outside the butcher (now a restaurant) to discover what little the coupons would buy today. How fortunate those born after the Occupation have been.
Such a crisis will never happen again. Or will it? Can we be sure? Putin’s offensive against Ukraine is not dissimilar to Hitler’s move on Poland, and be in no doubt if Ukraine had been a NATO member we would be at war again. The unbalanced supremo in the Kremlin has already refused to rule out the use of nuclear weapons and who knows what he might do.
As I understand his essay, Nigel Hall – who, incidentally, as a former senior soldier has an excellent understanding of logistics – is not a prophet of doom. He is merely pointing out that the world is going through an unstable geopolitical period and the least we should do is be prepared for the worst rather than just crossing our fingers.
Mr Hall is not the only one concerned. Deputy Steve Luce wrote to the Chief Minister on 5 June asking important questions on food supply, ‘…given the current international situation and the increased risk to supply chains’. In her reply of 12 June, Deputy Moore did not answer the questions fully, stating: ‘Government does not hold this specific information; however, the Island’s food supply requirements are outlined … in A Brief Review of Jersey’s Food Security by Dr Steve Webster.’
I have read Dr Webster’s report, and very interesting it is. However, it was written in 2011, all of 12 years ago, and though updated, that was before Brexit, the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s attack on Ukraine, not to mention Iran’s accelerating nuclear programme, North Korea’s development of ballistic missiles, China threatening to annex Taiwan and America’s failure to find effective leadership. Under the circumstances, the Chief Minister’s willingness to stand on a seriously out-of-date report as authority to do nothing amounts to head-in-the-sand complacency.
Deputy Kirsten Morel says he is looking into (whatever that means) a southern supply route. I hope he is doing more than just looking and he is applying significant resource to it. Two supply lines are more resilient than one, but hardly a complete solution. There is no long-term food storage facility here. It would provide some comfort if we had facilities for medium-term frozen and chilled supplies and longer-term extensive non-perishable foodstuffs storage.
Business is very familiar with the constant need to assess risk and, where appropriate, introduce mitigating policies. Jersey was not alone in being ill-prepared for a pandemic, but our government should learn from that and apply the learning to the whole range of possible future crises.
With the departure of the director general of Health and Community Services, I was hopeful that we could consign the ill-conceived Jersey Care Model to history. However, its replacement looks alarmingly similar in concept and shape. The Health Minister has said the new plan is not to bring in an NHS system. Why then does the introduction of a Health Advisory Board look so much like an NHS Trust? Could it be because the people advising Deputy Karen Wilson are from an NHS background and don’t know any other way? And where is the equivalent of the Care Quality Commission, the independent regulator of the NHS?
During the States debate, a minister and a deputy chief minister broke ranks, casting doubt on Deputy Wilson’s proposition. Deputy Tom Binet said: ‘As far as I’m concerned, failure to set up the correct structure in the first instance is simply a careless dereliction of our duty to the people who’ve trusted us to look after their interests.’ And Constable Andy Jehan said he did not have confidence in the Health Minister’s vision and he was concerned about cost. Sadly, the Assembly voted with the minister, just as they had over the Jersey Care Model. An editorial in the JEP (15 June) got it spot on: ‘Few will think [the Health Board] an effective mechanism for ensuring the consistency of the Island’s health service.’ I am among those who believe confidence in our health system will not be restored under this Health Minister.
The debate revealed a lack of Cabinet harmony. It is clear the Chief Minister is ultra-sensitive to dissent among her colleagues. She told Deputy Binet: ‘I will ask the Commissioner for Standards to consider the description of a minister lobbying against another.’ When did a States debate become lobbying? Was this her attempt to shut him up or just a clumsy way of saying, remember who is boss?
