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At the beginning of May we learned that waste and electricity charges would increase come the summer.
This led to calls from the political quarters that people should be protected from these domestic increases at a time of rampant and unpredictable inflation.
Indeed, one of the central elements of the Government Work Plan, which was approved in early May, was to mitigate against the increasing costs of basic goods and services.
But some things that require a high-level government response cannot be planned for far in advance…
Pictured: The war in Europe was in full swing come the spring.
The States, under firm political and public pressure, quickly announced and implemented a ‘Homes for Ukraine’ sponsorship scheme, allowing people affected by the war to seek refuge in the Bailiwick.
This was before the United Kingdom decided to deliver such a scheme.
Guernseyman Colin Wood told Express around this time that missiles were exploding close to his home in the southern Ukrainian city of Odessa every day and night, destroying tens of thousands of square meters of public and retail space.
Shortly afterwards the States of Guernsey revealed they had frozen under £5m worth of Russian assets since international sanctions against the aggressor kicked in. Jersey had frozen 200 times more at the time.
Over £455,000 had been raised for the Bailiff’s Disaster Relief Fund at the end of May.
Pictured: New management at Aurigny have been credited with running the airline in a more professional way.
The States-owned airline revealed that whilst 2021 saw a loss of £13.5m, demand was picking up following covid and the company was forecasting a break-even position for the coming years.
It also threw its weight behind the option to extend Alderney’s runway, saying it could reduce costs further by ditching its expensive Dornier aircraft and minimising the Public Service Obligation between the islands’.
It said up to 20,000 extra seats could be sold to Alderney if it were able to use its larger ATR aircraft on the inter-island route.
The Police were faced with several incidents involving young people throughout much of spring.
Hundreds were involved in a fight on La Mare de Carteret playing fields on the same day as a Cobo Balcony Gig, there was a filmed and widely shared fight at La Vallette, and two separate incidents in quick succession at Cambridge Park resulted in arrests.
Guernsey Police maintained that instances of youth disorder were relatively low and were often linked to a small number of offenders.
Pictured: The future of cannabis remains undefined.
The burgeoning industry hit roadblocks in early 2022 which led one industry insider to later comment that the island’s approach to regulation was poorly handled and misunderstood by government and law enforcement.
However, the provision of medicinal cannabis continued to expand with two clinics announcing plans to open new retail units in the south of the island, complementing those already operating in the north and Town.
Police had to issue a reminder that reselling prescription drugs was illegal after concerns were raised that the medicine was getting into the wrong hands.
Two people were sent to prison for several years in late June for supplying and possessing large quantities of the drug.
On the final day of June, the States Assembly were debating whether to review the legal status of cannabis. The States backed the review into legalisation or decriminalisation just hours later.
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