There is no good time for futile politics

Matters which were once of all-consuming importance now seem trivial.

The coronavirus crisis has lent perspective to much of island life.

That includes our politics. The States meeting that should have been held this week was delayed with barely a murmur. Why take the risk and set a bad example to others?

And anyway, its agenda included at least one item that would have seemed pointless even in normal times.

The requete demanding a debate before a US extradition treaty could be extended to the island was an exercise in hand-wringing that should never grace the floor of either St James or the Royal Court House.

Policy & Resources made it clear why the requete’s whole premise was a moot point. The treaty – controversial because of the possible extradition of suspects to a US state with capital punishment – was already going to come before the States without the need for any intervention.

Rightly, Home Affairs said that government had better things to do. ‘At a time when the States needs more than ever to be focusing on the future of the community, the economy and much more, the logic must surely be for the States to be managing its workload rather than add to it.’

To which many critics of the States would question: Should that not always be the case, not just when there is a crisis?

Yet the structure of our States Assembly almost demands vanity projects. Just as too many States members needlessly speak at length to reaffirm what others have said, or interrupt with a pointless point of order, it is too easy for individual deputies to clog up the works with hopeless amendments, requetes and propositions.

These are grim times, and we all wish them gone. But at least the States in its current trimmed-down form is functioning well. With focus and determination.

A committee of 38 could never handle a crisis of this scale. Can it ever hope to govern an island of 60,000 effectively?