19 Sark homes to have electricity cut tomorrow

Tuesday 06 October 2020

19 Sark residents will have their homes taken off the island's power grid tomorrow morning, after a court order requiring the removal of equipment from private land was finalised.

In a scathing Facebook post about the incident, Sark Electricity Managing Director Alan Jackson (pictured top) said that "residents should ensure they do not upset their landlords, as feudalism is alive and well on Sark."

In June, Sebastian Moerman made a request to have Sark Electricity (SEL) equipment removed from his tenement, which kickstarted a lengthy row between Mr Jackson, Price Control Commissioner Anthony White and Sark’s government, which is known as Chief Pleas. 

In Mr Jackson’s view, the Policy and Finance Committee, who had been expected to draft legislation to prevent such situations from arising, are to blame. In his recent Facebook post, he said that the Chief Pleas had previously confirmed they could grant a legal right of access to prevent the homes from being without power.

However, he claimed that, during the final court hearings last Friday, they "attempted to row back" that position. "There was sufficient opportunity to clarify this position in the event it was incorrect, and this was not done until the day of court," he wrote.

"The failure to clarify this position until some three weeks after the initial statement, and on the day a court order was put before the Senseschal, represents a consierable and significant failure on the part of Chief Pleas."

A last-minute proposal was apparently made by the Seigneur to have some homes reconnected via his own land, but SEL was unable to confirm that the land was owned by him. Other residents have been contacted for permission for works to be done on their land, but Mr Jackson says only two have agreed.

Mr Jackson added that SEL has been "fundamentally undermined" by allowing Mr Moerman to set this legal precedent, and the "piecemeal" approach of coming to individual agreements with each landowner does not help the SEL customers that are affected by the situation.

"Notwithstanding the logistical difficulties in preparing and agreeing multiple individual agreements, such an approach is contingent on the agreement of private residents who can refuse to co-operate for any reason whatsoever,’ he wrote. ‘As indeed a number have chosen to do."

Once the homes are disconnected from the SEL grid, the Emergency Committee will be responsible for powering their homes.

Mr Jackson says he is continuing to look at ways of reconnecting the affected homes, but at least two are inaccessible without crossing land that he is now legally obliged not to cross.