Comment: Time for Ministers to show they mean business

Monday 16 July 2018

Now the dust has settled on the elections, and the selection of the new Council of Ministers, what sort of team will they become?

Much early attention has focussed on their diverse political views, exemplified by the inclusion of three Reform Jersey members in the government.

For Express columnist, The Insider, it's time for the Council to show that being 'inclusive' has not come at too high a cost...

"Oh dear. I think the new Chief Minister has gotten off to a bad start with what some people regard as a grubby deal allowing Reform Jersey in to the heart of government. It is consistent with his stated desire for more inclusive politics, so I understand why he did it. Personally, I am not concerned by the way he did it - I just fear the consequences.  

"For politics to be inclusive the Chief Minister has to send the right message to all stakeholders. He has promised better communication. The problem is that communication is not what you say, but what the other person hears. The significant inclusion of Reform Jersey in government sends the wrong message to wealth creators, and a large part of the tax-paying base, who fear their fiscal incontinence, and lack of understanding of basic economics.  

"If the Chief Minister wants a more inclusive and balanced approach to politics (a laudable objective which is hard to rationally argue against) it will require Reform Jersey to play their part. 

Pictured: new Chief Minister, John Le Fondré, looking for a more inclusive approach to politics. 

"Time will tell in this respect but, in the meantime, the Chief Minister should reach out to this important constituency to ensure that they do not become marginalised in a shift to the left. Love them or loath them, they are the job creators and major tax payers.  

"An 'offsetting' reduction in ill thought through bureaucracy, applied to business by faceless, unaccountable civil servants, would go some way to providing reassurance, particularly in the sectors most exposed to an increasing minimum wage and changing consumer behaviour (hospitality and retail). Surely this is something that all politicians can see the benefit of and which can be a uniting force for them to rally around.

"To help, I have asked Express to try to collect some simple low cost measures which could be implemented straight away to make business easier. I would be grateful if business owners could send in some easy wins (click here to e-mail your ideas).  

"Perhaps the Chamber of Commerce and the IOD could also send in a few, as their members are at the sharp end. I suspect that a lot of gripes that business will send in are not in fact about the regulations themselves, but rather the way they are applied without common sense. As well as applying additional costs to business it should not be forgotten that the civil service incurs a cost in applying the bureaucracy itself.

"The lack of accountability, and the failure of government to deliver is in fact a bigger problem that a lack of inclusivity. Allocating responsibility and a timeline for delivery of certain projects will be at least as powerful in changing the nature of government.  It may also reduce the heightened sense of frustration felt by wealth creators and tax-payers and begin to tackle the problem of a lack of productivity growth in our economy.  Productivity growth, or rather the lack of it, is the real problem in the economy. 

"As with all new governments there is a period of hesitancy and uncertainty particularly when there are a lot of new politicians who have to find their feet. Our system encourages continuity through the civil service.  This time, however, the civil service is also going through a period of tumultuous change. There is a considerable amount of uncertainty and confusion around new roles and responsibilities.  There is not much sign of better communication.  At least yet.

Pictured: "Charlie Parker seems to be a fan of wholesale change, at lightning speed."

"Charlie Parker seems to be a fan of wholesale change, at lightning speed. The new Chief Minister seems more naturally inclined to cautious, inclusive decision making.  It will be intriguing to see how these two approaches collide. I would be surprised if they lead to effective decision making. Feedback from my friends 'at the coal face' of the civil service is not good in the sense that there is absolute confusion as to what is going on and a focus on control from the top."

The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and not those of Bailiwick Express.