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The new Chief Minister has confirmed she wants to unpick key parts of the controversial ‘OneGov’ reforms– and Sir Philip Bailhache is being eyed for a leading role in that work.
Speaking to Express’s Politics Disassembled podcast, Deputy Kristina Moore said she would look to change elements of the 2018 law that paved the way for ‘OneGov’ by:
Billed as a way of making Government more efficient, 'OneGov' was ushered in by the then-new Chief Executive Charlie Parker in 2018.
It involved tearing up the structure of government and creating several new departments – some of which, such as 'Growth, Housing and Economy' (later 'Infrastructure, Housing and Environment'), ended up with more than one Minister.
Accompanying the change, new 'Machinery of Government' legislation – known as P1 – was introduced to place more power in the hands of the Chief Executive and senior civil servants, in some instances removing the direct accountability of civil servants to Ministers altogether.
Pictured: The OneGov reforms were ushered in by Chief Executive Charlie Parker.
Asked on the podcast whether she would wish to repeal P1, Deputy Moore commented: "So we're going to do some considerable work to change that.
"We're going to start with a Cabinet Office, which is a bring-together of SPPP Department, or whatever they're called, and the Chief Executive's Office, so there will be a merger and a greater display that we're going to work together and we're going to deliver for the island."
Turning specifically to the centralisation of power under the Chief Executive, she said: "Well, there will have to be a piece of work to be done there but the Chief Executive became the Principal Accountable Officer and they have the ultimate say-so on absolutely everything, and it's how that power is distributed and managed throughout their team, because it really was about that internal team - the government side.
"So that needs some looking at, along with the Chief Executive, but I think we can do that successfully.
"In terms of the political accountability, those lines, we've already agreed that as an Assembly at the very end of the previous Assembly - Deputy John Young, the former Deputy from St. Brelade, brought a proposition to say that there had to be a line of accountability with the Minister leading clearly a department, and I think we can easily do that."
The Chief Minister said she would "very much like to work with Sir Philip [Bailhache] on that issue", adding: "I have asked him if he would like to join the States Employment Board as a non-ministerial member and he has accepted to do that which I'm delighted about, and I think that is going to be the beginning of that relationship and that piece of work."
Deputy Moore said she also "might have to think about" whether he could have a leading role in the new Cabinet Office.
Pictured: Deputy Moore said she would like to work with Deputy Bailhache on restoring accountability within Government.
At the time of the P1 debate, former Bailiff and then-External Relations Minister Sir Philip Bailhache warned the changes appeared to have been brought forward in "unseemly haste" and suggested that some States Members had been "bewitched" by Mr Parker's vision.
During his most recent election campaign, Sir Philip shared his continued concerns about P1, and addressing political accountability issues arising from the Machinery of Government legislation was a key part of the Jersey Liberal Conservatives-Progress Party coalition manifesto.
The two parties had agreed to back Sir Philip as Chief Minister, but between them only secured three seats in the States Assembly - Sir Philip (JLC), Malcolm Ferey (JLC), and Steve Luce (Progress) – leading Sir Philip to choose not to stand.
On Friday, Deputy Ferey was announced as an Assistant Minister for Social Security in Deputy Moore's Government.
Though he has been invited to serve on the States Employment Board, Sir Philip has not been given a Ministerial or Assistant Ministerial role.
It was also confirmed on Friday that Constable Andy Jehan would be Assistant Chief Minister and would be serving on the States Employment Board alongside Sir Philip.
You can listen to Deputy Moore's Politics Disassembled interview in full below, and click to listen back to episodes where Senator Tracey Vallois and Deputy John Young discussed OneGov...
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INSIGHT: Unlimited power with limited accountability - An in-depth look at P1, and how the Government walked into a £500,000 scandal with its eyes open...
FOCUS: What does a Cabinet Office do?
FOCUS: Meet your new Council of Ministers...
FOCUS: What is Kristina Moore's Chief Ministerial 'vision'?
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