As a States newbie, eight months ago my colleagues elected me to the Committee for Economic Development and the Development & Planning Authority. A stroke of serendipity has both presidents – Sasha Kazantseva-Miller and Neil Inder respectively – set to give their latest updates to the Assembly tomorrow.
Deputy Kazantseva-Miller will be up first. Economic Development made headlines early in its term by approving the re-introduction of British Airways to our airport’s roster. The economic importance of optimal connectivity cannot be overstated, and we are already seeing that in practice as businesses are reporting strong pre-season bookings. No doubt, the president will want to use part of her speech to welcome British Airways back to Guernsey.
And how can Deputy Kazantseva-Miller not look back on a year working closely with Brittany Ferries? We continue to collaborate with our European allies to enhance connectivity and trade.
A double whammy of Brittany Ferries and British Airways partnerships will see Guernsey’s tourist season injected with new levels of energy and optimism – never has there been a better time to invest in Guernsey, products or events.
Another ‘big ticket item’ for the president’s update will be the Finance Sector Growth Forum, which has begun implementing recommendations set to revitalise, rejuvenate, and reset Guernsey’s growth trajectory of our finance industry.
Meanwhile, Deputy Inder will hail a new era in which the ‘P’ in DPA could stand for ‘popular’.
Six months ago, the authority launched into a campaign of public and private engagement, whereby industry and government bodies have been asked to give their input on Guernsey’s planning landscape. Planning applications are up, and confidence is returning, helping Guernsey rise to meet our housing needs.
The authority is also delivering a focused review of the Island Development Plan which will help ensure there are enough sites to meet the demand of our strategic housing land supply indicator, which is informed by our strategic housing land availability assessment, and will no doubt be commented on by Deputy Inder.
We’ve also been working towards unlocking new housing without need for more development, streamlining the planning process, tackling derelict sites, and an open planning meeting was held that saw the unanimous approval of 85 homes at the Mallard.
Of course, all this work, from both teams within which I sit, sounds fantastically rosy from this one deputy. An important function of these president updates is to allow States members the opportunity to question and scrutinise the mandates and work of other committees. We hope for a robust grilling in the name of good governance.
One more important item on the agenda: the Banking Deposit and Compensation Scheme is one of those pieces of legislation that not many – other than perhaps ‘Father of the House’ Deputy Gollop, whose years of wisdom are dispensed during most debates – will stand to discuss.
The law, in place since 2008, protects Guernsey residents in the event of a ‘default’ (closure) of a Guernsey bank. It is a technical and well thought out piece of legislation, only being tweaked to provide better protection for depositors, which is why it will most likely easily and quickly pass.
When I first wrote this preview, a requete recommending the setting up of a working party of deputies to devise a model for cannabis to be legalised and regulated, led by Deputy Marc Leadbeater, was due to be debated. However, he has informed States members that he will be laying a motion to withdraw the requete, which I assume the Assembly will agree. The Guernsey Press broke news of this motion to withdraw yesterday. Deputy Leadbeater is facing a code of conduct case and wants to see that concluded before the future of cannabis is debated. He has said that he will re-present the requete, so it will be debated by the States at some point, possibly quite soon.
For some, cannabis is an elixir of all ailments delivered from heaven above; but for others, it’s the devil’s lettuce that grows straight up from hell.
A requete is a formal petition, signed by seven deputies, to force a debate on a specific topic.
In this case: 'to agree in principle that the Bailiwick of Guernsey should properly examine the feasibility, risks, and potential benefits of introducing a legal, government-regulated cannabis access framework, beginning with consideration of a time-limited pilot programme, informed by international best practice, including regulated pilot schemes currently operating in Switzerland and the European Union’
That’s a lot of words. Let’s break them down.
What are the risks and benefits of a government-regulated (controlled) cannabis market in Guernsey? To answer that question, the requerants want to form a multi-committee working party that will engage with local and external experts and bring back evidence-based recommendations to the States no later than December 2027.
These recommendations will also include a potential pilot scheme whereby Bailiwick residents can buy cannabis without the need for a medical licence. The requete goes on to note, that the medical cannabis industry has created ‘a paradoxical situation in which legal access routes may be inadvertently reinforcing the illegal market’ – in essence, a people are selling their prescription to recreational users.
There we are: the requete, all explained, and I still have a couple hundred words left to give my opinions.
As a member of Economic Development, I am all for exploring potentially promising ways of further diversifying our economy and so will be supporting this requete. I want to ensure we are equipped with the necessary evidence to either take the next step or decline to do so in December 2027.
Being well travelled, and having been around thousands of people using cannabis recreationally (in countries around the world where it is legal to do so), I do have a couple of major concerns when it comes to moving toward legalisation:
1. It is not for everyone, and there can be serious mental health implications if you have an underlying medical condition.
2. It is detrimental to young and developing minds.
Right now, it is anecdotally accepted that many people are using cannabis recreationally in the bailiwick. Yet, most of the financial benefits generated from the medicinal cannabis industry are sent off-island.
If Guernsey is to profit from cannabis via government regulation, then funds must also be allocated to bolster our cannabis education, mental health, and rehabilitation services.
I often think about my time spent with Dutch travellers. They would almost always pass rather than puff a joint. One day I asked why and was told ‘the young don’t like to smoke in Holland, because it is no longer cool’.
You need to be logged in to comment.