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More people are looking into moving to Guernsey, after watching the way the island has handled the corona virus pandemic.
Locate Guernsey had anticipated a reduction, but has seen enquiries rise by 20% since January, with more than 40 since lockdown began in March.
"Conversations I’m having reflect the exemplary way that Guernsey has handled the pandemic," said Director of Locate Guernsey, Jo Stoddart. "We expected enquiries to slow down after a record 2019 but numbers have held up as individuals and businesses have seen the way the island has responded to covid-19 and are champing at the bit to relocate here, partly as a result of that.
"Enquiries are coming in from all over the world, from South Africa, to Singapore, to Canada. It shows we’ve genuinely made a name for ourselves because of how we’ve responded to this crisis.
“People relocating to Guernsey have always been attracted to its safety, stability, security and fantastic quality of life. However, the Island’s response to this global pandemic has really cemented that in people’s minds."
Pictured: Deputy Gavin St Pier.
Although most of Locate Guernsey's off-island events for this year have had to be postponed, the agency is putting together more virtual events to promote the island as a destination for individual and business relocation across the world.
“In 2019 the world saw a lot of political upheaval and we were seen as a beacon of stability in that environment," added President of Policy & Resources, Deputy Gavin St Pier. "But in 2020, the pandemic has created global uncertainty on an entirely different scale.
"Still, the way we as politicians have been able to work with our top class health and public sector experts, private sector professionals and most of all the Bailiwick community, shows yet again that we truly are a ‘beacon of stability’ in every sense. Our ability to rally together, respond to a new and dangerous threat and to do so with the care and affection we’ve shown for each other and our island is unsurprisingly something that many people want in their own lives when thinking about where they want to call ‘home’."
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