£100 cards inject £4.5m into economy so far

Friday 02 October 2020

Islanders have spent £4.5m in Jersey's economy with their government-issued Spend Local cards - but around 20,000 people are still yet to activate theirs with just four weeks to go.

86,000 cards have been activated since they were issued at the beginning of September, with 58,000 islanders using their cards at least once.

The cards will expire at the end of October when the remaining balance will expire.

However, islanders are being advised to hold onto their cards in case they get topped up again. It's previously been hinted that the next top-up could happen in the new year.

The £11m Spend Local card scheme, which saw £100 credit given to every man, woman and child in Jersey, forms part of a £150m stimulus package put together by the Government in a bid to get money pumping around the local economy again in the wake of the pandemic.

Pictured: The scheme aims to get money pumping around the local economy.

The Government will be monitoring how islanders spend their cash to decide which areas of the economy might need an extra boost in future. 

That data is yet to be revealed, but the Deputy Chief Minister revealed at a press conference two weeks ago that toy shops had reported a big boost.

Chief Minister, Senator John Le Fondré, commented: “Although it’s still early days, it’s encouraging to see that islanders are heading out to support their favourite local businesses. We’re seeing more of a buzz in town, and businesses are seeing an uplift in sales.

“Looking at just the first three Saturdays, we saw a combined spend of over £1.3m on these days, which will provide a much-needed boost to our local economy. 

“I’d encourage Islanders to make sure their cards are activated, to take the opportunity to spend locally over the next few weeks, and make sure they keep their cards safe in case we top them up in the future.”