Harbour Pool Marina Project should be an investment in the community’s future

There will be those in a community who may be ill, too old or frail to hold a rod and the States may need to buy them the fish. But the majority of the community should be able to catch fish, eat some, sell some, receive income, be taxed and thereby provide for others. And if the income of the able-bodied is sufficient, they may save and buy a boat (which also has to be maintained with annual capital expenditure out of income generated). That allows many more fish to be caught with the same labour and thereby provide even more productivity, wealth for themselves and the community.

The medieval Anglo-French trade in conger and herring or the later Atlantic trade in salt-cod are no longer a creator of wealth for the island. Nor can we rely any more for a living on privateering, smuggling or tomato growing and perhaps, in future, finance. But three crucial things have not changed since the Middle Ages: the need to diversify our island’s economy; the favourable geographic location for marine activity; and the entrepreneurial and adaptable nature of the community.

It is perhaps no accident that many coastal communities in Europe, once reliant on the salt-cod trade, have embraced marine leisure tourism to restore their fortunes and encourage their young to remain in their communities. Marine tourism has been one of the fastest growing industries in some of the coastal regions of France, Spain and Portugal. In Scotland, according to Scottish Government statistics, employment in marine leisure tourism now exceeds the sum total of that of oil and gas support (excluding extraction), shipbuilding and those employed on Scottish fishing vessels.

Some European coastal communities have been the beneficiaries of tens of millions of pounds of EU financing of marine projects, especially marinas. These projects have provided livelihoods in areas which have little other resource than the sea. Guernsey may not have the same access to EU funds but it has a bond rating which justifies a low cost of borrowed funds for capital investment.

In terms of location, Guernsey can be reached easily under sail in a day from the UK without an adverse tide – less easy for our sister island Jersey. Nothing has changed for UK sailors today heading for France. Equally, sailors from Normandy or Brittany, wanting a taste of Guernsey, are only a day sail away. What has changed, however, according to a British Marine survey earlier this year, is the post-pandemic increase in water sport activity. Their research demonstrates the beneficial impact of water-sports on wellbeing values as a key factor in this increase.

Marine leisure tourism can create new employment in Guernsey. Employment opportunities here should not necessarily just involve sitting behind a desk in front of a screen or manipulating numbers or words for the finance industry. That life is not for everyone. Others might prefer the outside and practical life in which case there needs to be work that suits such souls, especially those of an entrepreneurial nature, a spirit which Guernsey has nurtured for centuries. Marine leisure embraces all water-sports and the industries derived from them and this provides a variety of opportunity and employment.

The spin-offs from marine leisure tourism include engineering and other marine trade activity; demand for restaurants and for shops when victualing boats; events which bring in income and entertain residents including races for yachts and boats as well as a staging post for cruising rallies; over-wintering of vessels, especially those enjoying non-VAT status having few other places to leave vessels in Northern Europe post Brexit – this brings off-season berthing income and marine trade employment.

There could be opportunities for links with marine courses at universities and sail training centres such as the UK Sailing Academy for parallel training in Guernsey by those of our children who wish to develop a career in professional yachting or, to take a leaf out of the Royal Navy’s book, we could provide outsiders with the opportunity to learn navigation skills in our tricky waters. Facilities could be improved for the Guernsey Sailing Trust to develop its activities for disabled children where existing facilities are limited.

Vision should not be blurred by over-enthusiasm or self-interest but nor should the project simply be proposed as an expense of the State.

The Harbour Pool Marina Project should be an investment in the community’s future, including compatible development around the harbour. The project should include private alongside public capital to share the cost and generate financial return sufficient to pay back capital over time and at least to maintain and enhance the infrastructure.

While the financial returns from the project itself have to be competitive with other projects, the outcome of the project must not just, as some seem to suppose, become a playground for the rich, however much taxable income they may bring. The project should be integrated in to the life of the community, become a pride of the people, and help create an additional source of future income, employment and enjoyment for the island.

CHRIS RUSSELL

De Putron House

Fermain Road

St Peter Port