His decision comes despite his committee colleagues indicating that as a group they will not support him and will be proposing someone else for the vacated seat. The election has been scheduled to take place on Wednesday 20 May.
The outgoing vice-president said he did not take his colleagues’ decision personally, given the limited time and information at their disposal.
‘All P&Rs are under constant pressure and scrutiny, its just politics,’ he said.
The senior deputy also said that it was ‘unusual’ during a police investigation for developments, like his recent arrest, to be placed into the public domain, but as that had happened, he felt it appropriate to allow the rest of the assembly to determine his fitness to continue in his current role.
Deputy St Pier said the only way he could do that under the rules of procedure was to resign and offer himself for re-election.
The deputy said he still believed he was the best person for the job, and that the last five months had clearly demonstrated his ability to deliver in the role while police investigations concerning him were ongoing.
‘I will not be withdrawing my resignation as Deputy Gollop has suggested,’ he said.
‘I think members are both equipped and entitled to effectively make the decision whether to remove me. By this route, I am giving them that opportunity and I will respect their collective decision.’
Deputy St Pier and his wife Jane were re-arrested on Friday on suspicion of misconduct in public office and a related offence under the 1948 Reform Law, having originally been arrested and questioned in early December on suspicion of harassment, and been on bail since then. The couple have consistently denied any wrongdoing.
The police investigation relates to matters which previously led to findings that Deputy St Pier had broken the States members’ code of conduct.
In November, the States Assembly rejected a recommendation from its standards commissioner to suspend Deputy St Pier over a phone call with a national journalist who was preparing a story concerning complaints about paediatrician Dr Sandie Bohin and local paediatric services.
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