Budget repeat for long-running States rates row

Wednesday 11 October 2017

St Helier is to fight on alone to get the States to pay rates on their properties, with the latest skirmish in the long battle to take place during the debate over next year's Budget.

The town Constable wants to amend that Budget to stop his fellow 11 parish Constables derailing the move, which had been accepted after more than 20 years of discussions during last year’s budget debate.

With the majority of public buildings including schools, hospitals and government hospitals in the island’s capital, the Parish of St Helier stands to gain the most, but the moves would also reduce the rates burden on other parishioners.

St Helier’s Simon Crowcroft has since led calls for last year’s directive to actually be implemented, but was last week left isolated in his mission by the Comité des Connétables - nine of whom had previously voted in favour of the idea - who shot down the proposals in a letter to the Treasury Minister.

Following the letter, the Treasury Minister decided not to bring forward proposals as agreed in his Draft Budget 2018, instead allowing the £0.9million that would have been due to the parishes to remain in the 2018 budget of the Department for Infrastructure, which will suffer a shortfall of £2.1million next year.

Pictured: As the parish with the most public buildings, St Helier stands most to gain from the States paying rates.

But that move did not appear to have won favour of other States members. St Brelade Deputy Montfort Tadier questioned why the desires of 11 out of 49 elected representatives had been prioritised, stating: “I for one am concerned that when the Strategic Plan says we should be prioritising in particular the improvement of St Helier and when islanders have told us they want the Constables in the States because they represent the best interests of parishioners, I’m really at a loss as to why… they are saying we don’t want this money.”

St Helier Deputy Scott Wickenden added: “I have great respect for the Comité des Connétables, but they are not an upper house; they do not get to veto other decisions.”

Despite opposition from his fellow 'custodians of rates', who had previously expressed concerns about schools having to pay rates and the implications of updating the IT system to accommodate changes to the way rates are paid, Constable Crowcroft has vowed to battle on, and has since asked the Treasurer to reconsider introducing States rates in an amendment to the forthcoming Budget 2018. 

Pictured: The Treasury Minister (left) submitted the Draft 2018 Budget without a reference to the States paying parish rates, but the Constable of St Helier (right) has since sought to rectify this by putting forward an amendment.

Speaking in the States Assembly, Treasury Minister Alan Maclean said that the door was not closed to the States paying rates, and that the Council of Ministers were still supportive of the idea. He added, however, that he first wanted to evaluate the Comité's concerns and find "common ground" between all parties on how the proposal should be implemented.