Time for younger voices to be heard

For those unfamiliar with Mr Marshall, he’s a former chairman and Lord Mayor of the City of Westminster and has a diverse and successful business background. He also has a strong local pedigree, so his is less drive-by advice and more cri-du-coeur from a committed resident.

Like Specsavers’ co-founder Doug Perkins’ intervention in 2017, warning that government was spending to the point where ‘the public (through taxation) simply have no more money to contribute’, business leaders have pointed out the dangers of where this island is heading.

Mr Marshall, too, mentions the need to make Guernsey’s runway fit for purpose – an edgy topic, one fears, that will become emblematic of the policy paralysis affecting government, which is torn between those demanding things remain as they are, versus those pressing for a more sustainable future.

That issue of sustainability is also emotionally charged. On the one hand, the island has to move to net zero – and the States is doing precious little to provide a steer on this critical topic – while at the same time ensuring there’s a good supply of well-paid jobs and the connectivity to ensure the business community regards us as a sensible place in which to remain and invest.

So what if they don’t, retort the already comfortably off – Guernsey’s too busy and over-developed now. A bit of decline would be no bad thing.

Well, here’s the rub. Guernsey’s choice isn’t really between becoming a Cornwall or a Monaco but between descending into an expensive and partially cut off retirement home for the well-heeled, or engineering a future for itself that younger islanders want and can remain in while having affordable access to the rest of the world.

The dialogue on ‘whither Guernsey’ is currently dominated by older, financially secure voices. The younger generations need to seize the initiative and tell government what their vision of the future is.