Having been elected to the Committee for Employment and Social Security just nine months ago, Deputy David Dorrity has quit saying he’s been facing an uphill battle to try and convince his colleagues that savings can be made.
Elected to the States in June, and ESS in July, Deputy Dorrity said since then he has been working hard to deliver savings.
A lack of support means he has decided to leave ESS and focus on other political work.
“It is with some regret that I announce my decision to resign from the Committee for Employment and Social Security,” he said.
“I became a member of ESS knowing that it was tasked with the difficult job of balancing public finances with providing for the genuine needs of the people of Guernsey who require support. Since joining, I have become increasingly frustrated by the lack of focus to identify and deliver meaningful savings. In an effort to address this, I wrote to the Committee earlier in the year to express these concerns. I then worked to establish the ESS Savings Working Group, tasked with reviewing all outgoings and identifying practical opportunities to reduce expenditure.
“I have come to feel that members of the ESS Savings Working Group have been fighting an uphill battle, with a lack of willingness to make the difficult decisions which I believe are necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of the support that the States is able to provide through the Committee.
“I have taken the difficult decision to step away from the Committee and sincerely hope that my replacement is able to have greater success in influencing decisions on spending while supporting the important work of the Committee in a sustainable way.”
Deputy Tina Bury, President of ESS, said she was “disappointed” and “a little surprised” to learn that Deputy Dorrity had tendered his resignation to the Bailiff.
“He has made a valuable contribution so far this term, especially with his expertise in pensions, which I’d like to thank him for,” she said.
Deputy Bury also refuted claims that her committee is not working together to make savings for the States.
“The work of ESS, which involves balancing support for the lowest earners and most vulnerable in our community and being financially responsible overall, is no mean feat and, at times, very challenging. This is the difficult task of a Deputy: how to deliver the services our community wants and needs, versus the overall financial picture.
“All of our Committee members are committed to the savings work the States is undertaking, which is why the ESS savings working group has recently begun its work in earnest. It has already identified around 30 actions that could be pursued. This work must be thorough though. We must understand the savings that could potentially be made but also carefully consider the consequences of any changes, and that will take some time.”
In a timely turn of events, Deputy Dorrity’s resignation was confirmed just hours before Ross Le Brun won the by-election.
Deputy-elect Le Brun served on ESS as a non-States member during the 2020-25 States, and said he’d be pleased to step in now there is a vacant on the political committee.
“It just makes sense, really, because I was in there. I know the staff, I know Tina, I worked with her on for four and a half years on ESS and it’s a seat.
“It’s just an open goal (for me), but it’s like the film title ‘One Battle After Another’. The first battle (for me) was just getting in and the next battle is now getting a seat on a committee.
“The battle after that will be trying to persuade people to believe in what I’m saying, because part of the reason I’m saying the things I say is because I don’t believe that that mindset has been in the States, and I do think slightly different to others. I’m not just wanting to go along with the current work streams, I want to create something new. I want to put new ideas in there.”