Fears that the Digital Greenhouse will close may be allayed with the confirmation that “interested parties” have already been in touch about taking on the ‘innovation incubator’.
A spokesperson for Economic Development (ED) said meetings were due to be held over the coming weeks with parties interested in taking on the opportunity of running the Digital Greenhouse.
Further details are expected to be released along with an ‘Expressions of Interests’ document shortly, after spokesperson said.
The ‘startup incubator’ and office space, in St Peter Port’s Market Square, was set up in 2016 as a States-backed hub to support Guernsey’s digital and creative sectors, by the old Commerce & Employment Department, headed up at the time by media entrepreneur Kevin Stewart.
The potential closure of the Digital Greenhouse was announced last week when ED said it was going to “get out of the way” of private businesses wanting to push forward with innovation and digital development.
The announcement came ahead of deputies resuming debate on tax reform at the end of this month, with the States facing increasing pressure to reduce spending alongside discussions on the introduction of GST.
The Chamber of Commerce is among those concerned about the potential closure of the Digital Greenhouse and said it was “extremely concerned about the vacuum this will leave”.
The organisation said it had already raised concerns about the “lack of support for the non-finance business community in Guernsey” and that the island is about “more than the finance industry”.
Chamber even warned ED will struggle to fulfil its mandate without an innovation incubator like the Digital Greenhouse was intended to be.
“Much of the Economic Development workplan simply cannot be delivered without the Digital Greenhouse or an equivalent mechanism in place,” said Chamber.
“Closing it without a replacement structure does not remove the need it was created to meet – it just removes the means of meeting it. Guernsey Businesses still need somewhere to turn for innovation support and diversification. Right now, this decision leaves nowhere.”
When ED announced its plans to privatise – or close – the Digital Greenhouse, it said this would save the States around £450,000 per year.
Chamber said this potential saving again raises questions about how ED treats the finance sector compared to other industries.
“At the same time as this closure, government has found an additional £1 million for Guernsey Finance (taking the total to £3.5m) and created a new senior ‘finance concierge’ role.
“We understand the importance of the finance industry to our economy, but the island cannot afford to put all its eggs in what is a shrinking basket. A resilient economy is a diversified one, and that requires sustained investment across all sectors -not just the largest.”
Before any decisions are made on what might happen to the Digital Greenhouse in the future, Chamber said it is calling on the States to “urgently set out how the functions currently delivered will be maintained, and to commit to a proper, funded mechanism for supporting the whole of Guernsey’s business community – not just one part of it”.
