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BBC News
16 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Race to become next Guernsey chief minister begins
The race to become Guernsey's top politician is under way, with deputies announcing their intention to chief minister Jonathan Le Tocq has said he would be willing to run for president of the Policy and Resources Committee (P&R) "to offer a degree of stability".Several candidates told the BBC they backed Le Tocq because of his experience in the role and ability to "bring people together".Deputy Mark Helyar said before the election campaign he would seek the top job, with the aim of controlling States spending, while Deputy Charles Parkinson confirmed he would make a tilt to advocate for a change to the island's corporate tax policy. Le Tocq said: "The culture needs to change right at the beginning of this term, I think I will do my best to try and work a coalition together of all types of people." Helyar became the vice-president of P&R in November 2022 after Deputy Heidi Soulsby resigned from the resigned ahead of a successful vote of no confidence in the committee in 2023. While expressing an intention to run before the election, Helyar did not answer when asked by the BBC on Friday whether he was still planning to vote of no confidence in P&R was led by Deputy Charles Parkinson, who finished third in the polls with 9,294 votes and said he felt he had a mandate to stand for for P&R president. Last year the States agreed a package of tax reforms including a 5% GST, a lower rate of income tax for earnings under £30,000 and reforms to social security contributions. Whether elected to P&R or not, Parkinson has said he would look to challenge the policy and attempt to get more money from local companies through reform to the coporate tax regime. Outgoing chief minister Lyndon Trott warned against changing the island's zero-10 regime, which means some companies pay no corporation tax and others pay 10%. Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez topped the polls with more than 10,000 votes, but she has not commented on whether she would stand for P&R Yvonne Burford, who came second in the polls, has said she wanted to be on P&R, but not as its the other possible contenders, 2020 poll-topper Deputy Gavin St Pier stood for P&R president, but lost out to Deputy Peter Ferbrache in Guernsey leader St Pier has already done the job between 2016 and 2020, but has not said whether he would seek it again, leaving the door open. After a short time on the Health and Social Care Committee (HSC) previously, some deputies the BBC has spoken suggested may seek a role as its has also been interest in that position from its vice-president Marc Leadbeater and deputy-elect Dr George Oswald.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Children are suffering due to lack of education decisions
New deputies will be decided, familiar faces will return and some will see their hopes of being elected slip the voters have decided who will make up the States of Guernsey, it will soon be the turn of the newly-elected deputies to make crucial choices for the island. There will be hundreds of decisions made by the next assembly; from education, social care and transport to housing immigration and finance. The BBC has been asking islanders what they think the big issues are likely to be. Finance The financial situation of the island will always be a priority for islanders and the States recently reported a £44m annual deficit in core services. Bob Murray, an outgoing deputy and former member of the Committee for Policy and Resources (P&R), said it was critical to understand the importance of being realistic when it comes to the island's said: "The new P&R will find that our financial situation is as critical as we have claimed."They will find themselves in exactly the same position of having to convince a new assembly to grasp the need for immediate action, and to disappoint many that their hoped-for manifesto promises are simply not deliverable." One of the biggest talking points of this term has been tax and, more specifically, Goods and Service Tax (GST). In November, plans for introducing a goods and services tax were set to be worked up as an income tax rise was rejected by the States. Fast forward to election results day and GST+, the amendment proposed by Deputy Peter Roffey, is still a big talking point. Housing Housing was brought up multiple times in the last has included the suspension of GP11, the planning policy that requires a portion of housing developments to be affordable or social housing. Other issues discussed have been islanders struggling to pay rent and the removal of medium term employment are issues that workers who have relocated to Guernsey hope are addressed by the next worker Emily Piki said: "There's not enough to accommodate everyone, all the people that are coming, because there's no doubt that there's many foreigners coming in from other places but it really is hard to find voter Chloe Presland told the BBC Guernsey Election Roadshow that the next States need to work hard to keep young islanders here, as house prices were giving them no choice but to leave. Education Outside the polling station at Beau Sejour the buzz word was voters felt the future for the island's children would be the making or breaking of the next Andy Wade said education and how the States would pay for for all the decisions were the most important issues. He said: "I just want to see them makes some decisions, they've been talking about it for years and years, meanwhile kids education has been suffering, just do something." Social care Social care has also been constantly raised as a challenge for the next deputy Peter Roffey wants new deputies to think about how best to fund the rapidly increasing amount of social care how much of that cost will fall on the care recipient themselves and how much on the whole community through the Long Term Care Insurance is not just social care that will be a challenge for the next assembly, questions have also been raised by voters about how those who may find themselves without a home will be cared for. The other issues There are more than four main decisions that will need to be made by the next states and the view of voters and outgoing deputies reflects that. Other topics that have been raised include transport, utility costs and Artificial Intelligence (AI).Outgoing deputy Andy Taylor believes AI will be the future for the island. However he said it was important to understand how it would work and how it could be used also raised the issue of what capital projects the states needed to prioritise. He said: "Between grants for vitally needed social housing provision, the hospital modernisation, a new dairy, Alderney Airport and so on there is not going to be enough cash to fund everything which could be deemed to be essential".
BBC News
5 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Outgoing Guernsey chief minister warns over corporate tax changes
Guernsey's next assembly should not make big changes to the island's corporate tax regime, the outgoing president of Policy and Resources (P&R) has warned. Deputy Lyndon Trott OBE led the campaign to introduce the zero-10 programme in 2008, which means some companies pay no corporation tax and others pay 10%.A number of candidates for the 2025 general election have said Guernsey should move to a zero-15 system or adopt a territorial corporate income tax scheme. "I caution the next States against doing anything unilaterally, only move when those of other size and status are willing to do the same," warned Trott. Proposals to change the island's corporate tax system were rejected on a number of ocassions during the last political States decided eventually to adopt a package of tax reforms, including a 5% GST, a lower income tax rate for earnings under £30,000 and reforms to social security contributions. In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC, before he leaves local politics on 30 June, Trott declared the changes to corporate tax in 2008 were the "biggest challenge" he had said the "damage that we would have done to our community, to our economy, would have been enormous" if the island had not voted for zero-10. Tax rises 'not heresy' Despite the States having agreed to introduce a GST, alongside other tax reforms, Trott suggested the States should look at other changes to make the island's tax system more progressive. He said: "I'm someone who thinks that we pay far too little in terms of income tax. I pay 20%. If 20% means 20% to me, I'd be very happy to pay 22% or even 25%. "There are colleagues of mine who throw their hands up in horror. It's heresy to speak in this way."Deputies rejected proposals from Trott for a temporary increase in the rate of income tax from 20% to 22%. "I genuinely believe in a progressive tax system," commented Trott."In other words, those who can afford to pay should pay. However, we absolutely can't touch the way we treat capital." Covid under-investment When confronted about why zero-10 had not led to greater economic growth, Trott complained that the island had "under-invested" in its infrastructure for "too long".He said: "Part of the problem was Covid. We ran down our reserves during Covid substantially. "We were lucky to have them. And we transferred £150m to support our community from our reserves."During the pandemic, as Vice-President of Policy and Resources, Trott was in charge of the financial support for businesses. He said: "It was essential. "But that is money that we would otherwise have invested directly into our infrastructure, which would have created a far more positive economic downturn than the one we've had."So I'm sort of hiding behind that."He blamed the lack of investment on infrastructure on the island's tax take. He said: "We take something like 21.5% of our GDP in tax. "Jersey takes 26%, the Isle of Man 29% and the UK is nearly 40%. So we are at the very bottom of that league table."
