No time to rest as economic wave builds
IN ORDINARY times, August is a restful time for island politicians.
With no States meetings from mid-July to early September, deputies are usually able to escape the pressures of governmental grind and enjoy the sunshine.
One deputy used to take that to the extreme and disappear to the other side of the world each year for a six-week break.
A few committee meetings might be missed, but little of importance happens in August with many senior civil servants also absent.
These are no ordinary times.
The Bailiwick may have weathered a mighty storm but it is far too soon to relax our guard.
Even without a second wave of coronavirus there is significant risk of a second wave of job losses and economic damage.
For, as has become increasingly obvious over the past weeks since lockdown ended, the islands are heavily dependent on the economies around them.
The UK is the conduit for not just goods but services and investment. If the City of London sneezes we catch a cold.
The chief minister warned business leaders this week that more permanent job losses should be expected later this year and into next.
The damage done by coronavirus to the world’s economy is already extensive. Being an island will be no barrier to the tsunami of change that will sweep across the globe as countries fight to put their finances in order.
The Bailiwick has no border defence to that, except to be ready for anything. Preparation will help, but to keep the islands competitive in the ‘new normal’ will mean a willingness to adjust quickly and decisively.
As a consequence, no deputy should be getting too comfortable on their sun lounger. To start with there’s an unprecedented August meeting with plenty on the agenda.
More than that, these sunny days when the virus is absent and the internal economy functioning relatively well are an invaluable opportunity to look ahead and make ‘build back better’ more than just a nice piece of alliteration.
Other jurisdictions will be doing the same – including our Crown Dependency cousins. And they will not be distracted by a general election.