Seeing progress from E&I is now crucial

There is always plenty on the E&I agenda and there was much for committee president Lindsay de Sausmarez to update colleagues on yesterday.

Issues such as climate change – it is working on its electricity strategy, reviewing its climate change work plan, and developing its ‘Pathway to Zero’ plan, looking at what the island needs to do to meet its net zero carbon emissions targets. This final item should be completed this year, and the extension of the Paris Agreement to Guernsey could be completed in the next couple of months.

This is much-needed work, with the clock ever ticking on reducing emissions targets and islanders none-the-wiser on how we will get to where we are committing to be.

There are more delays on capital spending on some key infrastructure projects. When the Chief Minister announces himself in office and says that high on his priorities is getting busy on a capital programme, and looking to accelerate projects such as Havelet Slip, Fermain wall and the Cows Horn steps, it’s not a good look 18 months later to still have no visible progress on any of them.

That showed a lack of appetite, it was alleged by Deputy Simon Vermeulen, but this was refuted by Deputy de Sausmarez, who says the committee prioritises real coastal defences, rather than coastal features, and then not for the first time, blamed a lack of human resource within the committee.

A complaint backed up by top brass at Sir Charles Frossard House, apparently, but there is now a proposed resolution for this in hand, she added.

‘But the cumulative impacts of Brexit, Covid, and internal HR policies have really taken their toll across the board, so this is an issue we feel we need to address more broadly.’

But with so much on, this committee needs to somehow overcome its staff shortages, demonstrate some priorities, and make some real progress before it reports back to the States in the next six months or so.

The island’s environment and infrastructure, and very future, is counting on them.