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Visitors to Fort Regent, Springfield and Les Quennevais sport centres will once again be able to pay with cash.
Deputy Lucy Stephenson yesterday succeeded in her bid to re-introduce cash payments to sports centresfrom June onwards.
Debated in the States Chamber yesterday, the second part of her proposal sought to extend a review into cashless policies across all departments and facilities, but politicians instead voted in support of Infrastructure Minister Andy Jehan's amendment which restricted the review to "relevant" sports departments and facilities only.
The matter came to the fore after an autistic islander was prevented from going swimming at Les Quennevais Sports Centre after trying to pay with cash in December, following the introduction of the cashless policy in 2020. The decision was slammed by his carer, and prompted many more islanders hit out at a policy they felt excluded the elderly and vulnerable.
Deputy Stephenson, a former Assistant Minister with responsibility for sport, said it was a "matter of regret" that she did not have the time to reform the cashless policy before losing her ministerial role following the vote of no confidence in the then-Chief Minister Kristina Moore.
Pictured: Deputy Stephenson said the Government should do more than "just firefight" individual cases where vulnerable islanders had been prevented from using public services.
She said: "This simple proposition asks the Government to champion accessibility, freedom of choice and pragmatism and put those above a cost-cutting exercise and what might be easier for the Government's internal processes to handle.
"We are not yet a cashless society and Government should not be leading the charge in enforcing that on islanders."
In a report setting out her proposal, the Deputy highlighted the case of the islander unable to go swimming at Les Quennevais.
It was not the Government's responsibility to "just firefight" individual cases, Deputy Stephenson added, but to "look carefully and ensure we don't have more cases like that we have to sort out".
Constable Jehan, whose amendment means that the review will be contained to sports facilities, said that 800,000 people have transacted at Les Quennevais since the cashless policy was introduced and he was aware of "very limited concern or complaints".
Treasury Minister Elaine Millar was in support of the amendment, saying that cashless policies were responding to changes in payment habits seen locally and nationally, as was Social Security Minister Lyndsay Feltham who said the holistic review would cause inefficiency.
Deputies Hilary Jeune and Louise Doublet argued that it was important to retain a cash option for young islanders who do not have access to bank accounts.
Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel said he was considering bringing a proposition to the Assembly which enshrined the right to cash transactions in Jersey.
"The desires by Treasury and others to not have to put up with cash will rob us of our fundamental human right to privacy, freedom and autonomy," he said.
No cash? No problem. Cash? No swimming.
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