‘Still intent’ to deliver on civil service reform

His predecessor, Gavin St Pier, asked for an update, after reminding the States that Deputy Ferbrache had pledged that civil service reform would be a high priority when P&R was elected in October 2020.

‘I remember saying it and I don’t resile from it,’ said Deputy Ferbrache.

‘There’s no point couching things and saying it’s going well. It’s not going as well as I had hoped. It’s going slower than I had hoped.

‘Nearly three years on from that first statement, I didn’t think we’d be in the position we are in now.’

But Deputy Ferbrache assured the Assembly that P&R had not given up on the kind of civil service reform it would like to see.

‘It’s still progressing and there is the intent to do it ... we haven’t given up,’ he said.

Despite its slow progress on civil service reform generally, Deputy Ferbrache told the States that his committee had accelerated work reviewing the public sector pension scheme, and labelled as ‘ill-conceived’ a recent Guernsey Press article written by Lord Digby Jones which criticised P&R’s approach to public sector pensions.

‘He should realise we are under a States resolution to consider introducing a defined contribution pension scheme for all new starters in the public sector with effect from 1 January 2025,’ said Deputy Ferbrache. ‘There is a deadline of September 2024 for reporting back to the States with findings.

'We’ve expedited that work with a view to presenting our recommendations to the States within a shorter timescale.’

Over the past two decades, most companies in the private sector which offer pensions have switched from defined benefit to defined contribution schemes. Making the same move in the public sector would require the approval of the States Assembly.

Deputy Ferbrache said P&R would put reform proposals before the Assembly ‘as soon as practicable’.

‘We’re acutely aware that any proposals need to be appropriately modelled and costed, seeking both to reduce the long-term financial risk to the States as an employer and support our wider work to modernise employment contracts.’