Sarnia Spring faded into a winter of discontent

A WEEK is a long time in politics, or so the saying goes.

So just imagine what developments could be made in a year under that philosophy.

Some argue it's not fair to expect a States to make progress in just 12 months, that it's not fair to judge them yet, to which the answer is simple – sit in an office pulling a £32,000 a year-plus salary for a part-time job and your employer would want to see results.

So here we are, the first anniversary of the Sarnia Spring, the United States of Change.

Ask yourself as a voter whether your heightened expectations have been met yet – or is it the case of same old story or, in fact, worse?

None of the States since the 2004 reforms have had such a turbulent 12 months. The year has been peppered with testing incidents – a £2.6m. fraud; a massive overspend by Health and Social Services leading to ward closures and the resignation of the board; three resignations from the Scrutiny Committee; the Home Department damned for its political handling of the AFR affair; and now the toe-curling recalculation of the waste strategy capital costs.

Then there's the sharp contrast between what is said and what is done. The message has always been about a new era in openness and transparency, which seems to stand up right until the point of delivery.

We now have ministers taking backbenchers to task for asking too many questions without seeing the irony of their stance.

Of course, if they provided full and frank responses in the first place, ones that stand up to scrutiny, there would not be the need to keep going back for more.

Too much of the current philosophy is not one of unbridled openness but of shoot the messenger – which is why Deputy Mike Hadley has faced a code of conduct complaint for releasing two independent reports into the A&E service which Health and Social Services wanted to cover up.

Compare what the department put on the record with what was in the reports and there is a worrying trust issue developing.

Some ministers seem to hate question time in the States, especially when they leave themselves exposed without a suitable briefing.

But this has been one of the biggest pluses of this term – to the extent that the extended question time at the last meeting was one of the strongest examples of this States working well.

It just shows that a time limit on question time should be abolished altogether – it can be such a powerful tool. Without it we would not know of the abject failure of PSD's calculator, for example. Backbenchers have been able to show their worth.

There are areas where the inexperience has shone through, too.

In fact it has become something of a sport for the more senior members to put their fresher counterparts on the spot armed with the knowledge that they know the answer but the chances are the 'newbie' won't.

The best, or worst, example of this naivety was Treasury's handling of mortgage interest relief when it released only half the story and once it raced to fill in the gaps the argument was lost – for now at least.

Then there is deputies' pay – for all that some members wriggle and squirm believing it is media-led hysteria, it is a very real issue for the public.

And it is muddled thinking at best to blame the last States, or the independent pay panel, not take the chance to vote for a freeze and then decide to make up individual rules for how much to accept – the full rise, half of it, a donation to charity, I'm not telling you.

Having sat through the two debates on this, and read the rules voted through, I still can't see the one that says link it to manual workers' pay either.

There are positives from the year – well, there had to be, really. But they are more works in progress, looking good so far, than anything the public would understand as a lasting legacy.

Education's vision has won plaudits, but its challenge is very much to come with budget cuts and the future of primary schools and the 11-plus on the horizon.

Guernsey appears to be doing all it needs to keep up with the international norm of tax transparency – the mood is moving in only one direction on that.

The launch of the wholesale review of personal taxation, pensions and benefits is a bold step, one with ramifications that will touch everyone.

But the real test, the real boldness, will come in forcing through any necessary changes – that is when the electorate will sit up and take note.

With all its plans and strategies, there is a lot of time being spent putting groundwork in place – but what will happen when the building blocks are on top, when it becomes visible and starts to impact on people? Will the States come up with a sympathetic architectural marvel?

Just why these isolated examples of naivety, muddled thinking, lack of clarity and breakdown of trust are important will become all too apparent as this and next year progress.

The States is undergoing a transformation like it has never seen before in order to deliver £30m. of ongoing savings. It has promised to become lean and efficient.

To do that, it will have to cut services and increase charges. That process is unpopular and requires a consistent and well-argued message for the public. It requires faith that the evidence is just that and is not built on sand.

This States is on the back foot at the very time it will have to deliver some uncomfortable messages.

That is the legacy of this year in politics.