Chamber: new waste charges will damage tourism

Thursday 18 May 2017

Jersey's Chamber of Commerce has strongly criticised proposed new commercial waste charges, warning they will make local hotels uncompetitive compared to other destinations.

Chamber has also described consultation on the charges as more of a "briefing," and says that the real effects haven't been properly thought through.

This week the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) announced liquid waste charges for businesses will come into force at the end of March 2018, with a bill up to £40,000 a year for larger hotels, while solid waste charges will be introduced before the end of the next year - subject to final discussions in the States Assembly. 

Making the announcement, Deputy Eddie Noel, Minister for Infrastructure, said his department had been engaging with businesses about the proposals, and they were being given plenty of notice in order to help mitigate the impact. 

However, Chamber argues the consultation hasn't been done properly, and there will be unintended consequences if the new charges are brought in.

Andy Jehan, Chair of the Transport and Tourism Committee, told Express: "We are very disappointed, we do not feel that there has been enough detailed work on the impact assessment. This is a piecemeal approach, there hasn't been a review of taxes which was necessary before the introduction of a new tax. 

"There hasn't been a debate on the subject or a full proper dialogue. We haven't been given the opportunity to discuss the charges. We had a meeting in March but it felt more like a brief rather than a consultation."

With a proposed annual liquid waste charge sitting between £350 and £40,000, Mr Jehan is warning that the impact on some businesses will be drastic, especially in the hospitality sector:

"You just can't reduce how much water you use, you can't not wash vegetables or clean premises. You have to provide a good service and you can't compromise with the health and safety of customers. Hotels already do a great deal for environment and we support moves that will encourage a more sustainable approach but this is a significant charge that could forces businesses to close or open seasonally instead of all year round."

"What the department has failed to acknowledge is that the waste charges won't just affect the final cost of a stay directly. Prices will also go up indirectly. Every hotel buys milk, if the dairy industry puts up the prices because of the new charge, then hotels will have to reflect this increase, same goes for breweries who use a lot of water, there is a compounded effect which we are concerned hasn't been looked at properly."

Mr Jehan also says that the decision was poorly timed as Jersey is trying to diversify its economy. He explained: "It is very disappointing, many members of the industry consider it a blow. Making services even more expensive is not going to help. Jersey is competing with a global market and if taxes mean we cannot offer services that fit customers' budgets we will lose business. We are directly competing with Guernsey and the Isle of Man and those jurisdictions have lower liquid waste charges, it makes you wonder if alternatives have really been looked at."