Austerity will be a tightrope for deputies

Invariably people attempt to enter politics to attempt to do good things for their communities. Not to practise austerity, and preach to their electorate about living within their means.

One suspects that however stern the warnings from Policy & Resources about the island’s financial position, their fellow deputies, and particularly the newer members of the Assembly, may take some convincing of the need for austerity.

Comments from Deputy Mark Helyar, treasury lead for P&R, which made our front page headline on Friday – ‘There is no more money to spend’ – carried that same resonance as the note that Liam Byrne, chief secretary to the Treasury under Gordon Brown, left for his Conservative successor in 2010.

‘I’m afraid there is no money,’ was the message he wrote and went on to regret, as it damaged Labour’s record on government finances.

Will Deputy Helyar one day feel the same way? He is now tasked with the job of returning to the States with a ‘nothing-off-the-table’ menu for a review of taxes.

Having opposed tax increases on the way into politics, he has maintained that approach in public as the financial squeeze is discussed.

‘Raising taxes lets government off the hook in terms of delivering value for money, and it’s the wrong time to get in the way of economic recovery,’ he said.

Ah, economic recovery. Whatever did happen to Revive And Thrive, or #BuildBackBetter?

One senses there are ideological collisions imminent in the States Chamber. Deputy Sasha Kazantseva-Miller was quick to highlight the island’s strong recovery from Covid in response to the P&R warnings.

‘Perfect time to send a strong message of the need to invest in our people, economy and environment, not the other way round,’ she said.

‘My message is of hope, ambition and investment, rather than austerity and doom and gloom.’

P&R and the States collectively will now have to walk that tightrope over the next few years.