In her committee update to the States, she once again apologised to those waiting for assessments, repayments or responses to enquiries but said that matters were improving.
‘While service levels are certainly not where we want them to be, the position today is materially stronger than it was a year ago,’ she said.
‘We have, for the first time, clear visibility of backlogs, demand and operational pressures across the service. This gives officers the information needed to prioritise work effectively, target resources where they will have the greatest impact, and deliver recovery in a planned and controlled way.
‘We are at last at a genuine turning point. Officers are no longer focused on understanding the scale of the problem – they are actively addressing it.
‘Recovery will not happen overnight, but we now have the visibility, governance and control needed to make steady and measurable progress.’
Deputy de Sausmarez said that since March more than 13,000 items had been processed, including a backlog of 3,000 repayments now cleared.
The backlog of older personal tax cases has reduced by about 30%, debt recovery activity has restarted in a structured manner, and bereavement cases have been fully triaged.
2024 assessments will be released in a controlled and phased way to ensure that any resulting repayments can be processed promptly, and customer demand managed effectively.
‘While this progress is encouraging, recovery will take time. This is not a single backlog that simply counts down – work continues to enter the system every day while historical cases are being cleared,’ she added.
‘This is a phased recovery, not an overnight fix. Customers will see continued improvement, but not in every area at the same time.’
Work also continues to improve the systems, processes and data that support the Revenue Service.
The next phase will focus on longer-term transformation and future-proofing.
‘The objective is a stable, predictable service operating within clear and reasonable timeframes,’ said Deputy de Sausmarez.
P&R Treasury lead Charles Parkinson announced the previous day that the backlog amounted to 20,000 tax returns.
Policy & Resources update in brief
Data
The States has started to produce data again for the publication of various ‘national’ statistics.
Data has been produced since the start of the month but the rolling electronic census IT system needs to be adapted so that it is ready to automatically process the data it receives from the new Revenue Service system.
Policy & Resources expects to be able to confirm a timetable for the publication of fully up-to-date national statistics soon.
Leale’s Yard
P&R president Lindsay de Sausmarez said that good progress was being made on this ‘super priority’ for the political term, with a contractor soon to be appointed to clear the site after planning permission was received for the demolition.
‘After more than quarter of a century of frustrating lack of progress on this site, I very much welcome the activity that we can soon expect to see there,’ she said.
Bailiwick Commission
P&R is claiming much positive feedback from the initial engagement of members of the new Bailiwick Commission from Guernsey, Alderney and Sark following their visit in April.
They are due to visit again soon and produce an interim report in the autumn.
UK-EU Reset
Work continues to seek to include Guernsey in relevant parts of the UK-EU Reset. Bailiwick students who are studying at UK universities and other higher education settings will again be able to participate in Erasmus+ scheme, which provides fully-funded scholarships, grants, and exchange opportunities for students, apprentices, educators, and young professionals to study, intern, or teach abroad, and the States is looking at how young islanders can be included in the proposed Youth Experience Scheme to allow easier access to work, study and travel in the EU and to allow EU youngsters to come to the islands for the same purposes.
Movement of foods and plant products
In May 2025, the UK and the EU agreed to form a Common Sanitary and Phytosanitary area under an SPS agreement, to allow the easier movement of foods and products of plant and animal origin, and the States is seeking the inclusion of the Bailiwick in that agreement. The UK Government has confirmed that this outcome is a high priority, with negotiations reaching their final stages before the agreement takes effect in 2027.
Portfolio board advisers
Reviews of the way that capital projects are handled, being undertaken as part of the MyGov review, has seen 20 applications for the post of voluntary portfolio board advisers, where the States was looking for sector experts to offer to pose questions on major States projects.
President Lindsay de Sausmarez said that the number of applications showed the depth of skills and experience available across the community, and the postholders would bring an independent perspective and constructive challenge to the management of the portfolio.
A first six-monthly performance report is due out next month. ‘That’s an important step in improving accountability and building confidence in how these major investments are being handled,’ said Deputy de Sausmarez.
Chief officers
States chief executive Boley Smillie has started working with States committees on the move to a new chief officer model and will update all States members next week.
His new, public objectives will be published in July as part of a mid-year review which will include a clearer picture of operational performance and the progress being made to strengthen how the public service delivers.