HNWI 'Freshers' can't solve our problems alone

But now the Guernsey Party has introduced the new style of Fresher, offering a very different potential benefit to the local economy.

The party proposes that ‘Financially Resourced Earners with Sustainable High Expected Returns’ could be an opportunity to solve the island’s revenue woes, demographics and dependency ratio issues, boost the economy and not overheat the housing market, all at the same time.

It suggests that finding, and attracting, fewer than 1,000 of these ‘Freshers’ would achieve the same positive impact on the island’s finances, based on tax and social insurance contributions, as nearly 8,500 ‘average earners’ would have to do if the island is to mitigate the impact of its ticking demographic time bomb.

The proposal is to create Freshers as a new housing category, sitting attractively between local market licensees and the open market.

The concept has been fairly quickly dismissed by some in government and many more commentators through various channels.

Their simple rationale is that rebuilding a workforce shrinking rapidly through basic demographics cannot just happen through attracting high net worth individuals to the island.

‘We’re going to need a viable workforce,’ said States chief executive Paul Whitfield yesterday.

‘It’s not all about just simply HNWIs. There’s only so many of our own people who can be skilled to be plumbers and carpenters.’

While the party should be applauded for an attempt to bring credible and broad research before government, it is unrealistic that one such idea could resolve all the island’s housing problems. This proposal, effectively putting 1,000 golden eggs in one basket where we might need more than 8,000, just instinctively doesn’t feel right for Guernsey.

Attracting high net worth individuals to the island will play a part in Guernsey’s future. But they won’t solve our problems by themselves.