Deputy Gavin St Pier, on behalf of the Policy & Resources Committee, has addressed the States Assembly regarding the MyGov investigation.
The report into MyGov was released earlier this week, after Boley Smilie found that “more than £21 million” was spent on it – more than £16m of it spent with Agilisys – “with no meaningful benefit to taxpayers”.
He’s since stated that Guernsey’s elected representatives must hold him to account.
In today’s States meeting, the Vice-President of P&R has described the project as a “systemic failure” that fell below public expectations, primarily due to a lack of accountability and oversight.
Deputy St Pier attributed the loss of £21.4 million to a “systemic failure” rather than a technical one. He stated that despite numerous warning signs, the programme was allowed to continue without effective intervention.
”It is simply unacceptable that MyGov was allowed to continue for so long,” Deputy St Pier said, adding, “consuming vast sums while delivering almost none of what was promised.”
A key claim made by Deputy St Pier is that governance became “ever more complicated instead of more effective.” He went on to highlight an “astonishing” arrangement where a lead supplier was embedded in the board responsible for overseeing its own performance.
Deputy St Pier continued by acknowledging that the programme’s failure was exacerbated by a culture that ignored internal expertise, and he noted that staff who raised legitimate concerns were often sidelined.
He said “capable, committed individuals who cared deeply about their work and about this island, were marginalised for raising legitimate concerns.”
Deputy St Pier confirmed that the Policy & Resources Committee fully supports the Chief Executive’s plan for reform.
This includes a new rule where no funding is released unless delivery is proven, and a commitment to “unvarnished truth” in reporting.
Deputy St Pier said “it demands the most senior leaders in our public service to be more disciplined in what the organisation does, more realistic about capacity and capability, and more demanding about governance and accountability from the outset.”
While promising that there would be “real consequences” for senior roles, Deputy St Pier cautioned against a public “tarring and feathering,” insisting that disciplinary matters must be handled professionally by the Chief Executive under employment law.
To his colleagues in the chamber, Deputy St Pier claimed that ”accountability has been promised, and it will be delivered.”
Questions from the floor
Following the statement on the MyGov investigation, several Deputies questioned Deputy St Pier regarding historical responsibility, financial losses, and future safeguards.
Deputy Neil Inder opened the questioning, with a pointed probe over the contract that was initially awarded out.
Deputy Inder challenged Deputy St Pier on his previous leadership, suggesting the “rot started” with a flawed, non-compliant tender process during the 2016 – 2020 term.
Deputy Inder further argued the States of Guernsey not only lost £21 million in direct spending but also missed out on the £7 million in potential annual savings.
Deputy St Pier responded by acknowledging the contract “delivered next to nothing.” However, he maintained that while the political ambition was valid, the public service lacked the capacity to act as an “intelligent client” to manage such a complex contract from the outset.
Deputy St Pier also confirmed that the issues identified are not just isolated to a single project. He explicitly linked the MyGov failures to ongoing struggles within the Revenue Service transformation and the Electronic Patient Record system.
He argued that because the problem is “systemic” across multiple departments, it requires a total overhaul of how the public service operates, rather than just fixing one project.
Deputies John Gollop and George Oswald raised concerns about how much power is being handed to the Chief Executive and whether politicians will be kept in the loop, to which Deputy St Pier promised “enhanced reporting” and stated that the Committee is committed to sharing information as soon as they receive it.
In response to Deputy Rhona Humphreys, the VP of P&R admitted that the States are currently in a transition period which “does present risk,” and he stressed the need to rapidly bring in outside expertise to bridge this gap.
Deputy Tina Bury sought further clarity on the balance between hiring expensive consultants and building internal skills.
Deputy St Pier replied that while external experts are “entirely appropriate” for highly technical tasks, there must be a focus on upskilling the local workforce to manage projects internally in the long term.
More to follow…