Guernsey financially "well placed" to deal with covid

Thursday 25 June 2020

The States of Guernsey had a surplus of £105.6million at the end of last year, putting the island in a "good place" to deal with the financial challenges this year has brought.

2019's accounts have been published this week, showing a strong position compared to the previous year, when the States had a deficit of £16.2m.

Last year's General Revenue unallocated surplus came in at £5.1m more than expected, with a 5% increase in income tax receipts and a 3.4% increase in document duty.

Pictured: The overall surplus for 2019 was £105.6m.

But all that is likely to have changed over the past six months, with the States agreeing to borrow half a billion pounds to help the island's economy recover from the effects of the pandemic. 

"Clearly the first part of this year has seen a seismic change in our circumstances because of the covid-19 pandemic and everything we've had to do to respond to that and keep our community safe," said President of Policy & Resources, Deputy Gavin St Pier. "The financial position has changed dramatically since 2019 and these accounts don't reflect where we are now.

"But they're not irrelevant either and importantly, they do show how years of financial discipline helped to improve our position ahead of the pandemic and mean we are well placed to deal with the impact it is having on public finances.

"We went into this crisis with a budget surplus, substantial reserves, modest borrowing and a very good credit rating. This will enable funding to be made available to deliver the recovery action plans which will be built after the States debate the Recovery Strategy.

"We are in a good place for responding to the challenges now before us. Our recovery won't be easy and we still need our community to pull together as they have throughout the crisis and help us push forward with the Revive and Thrive Recovery Strategy."

Pictured: Pay costs of the Senior Leadership team.

In total, the States spent £247m on pay costs for its staff last year - taking up more than half the total revenue spend.

At the end of the year, the States employed 4,666 full time employees.

The accounts report can be read in full HERE.

Pictured top: Deputy Gavin St Pier.