“We must all understand the financial position facing the island - the numbers are clear,” he said. 

“I'm certain.. that with positive action, we can turn this around. It will take time, energy, and... political courage. It means refocusing the priorities of government, being clear on what we can and cannot deliver and providing support and opportunities for growth across the community.  

“My committee is up to the challenge." 

He then went on to reveal several steps P&R have taken to try and help committees “deliver real term savings of between 2.5 and 3%”, one of these being a new committee subgroup tasked with reducing costs. It’ll be led by Deputy Dave Mahoney, according to Deputy Ferbrache, who also named Deputy Simon Vermeulen, Carl Meerveld, and Sashsa Kazantseva-Miller as supporting members, with a non-voting States member (Dave Beausire) joining too. 

“They will meet soon and work with principal committees, as well as the community, to understand... what we can do differently in the future. I believe this group - comprised of sensible people - will not be focused on achieving savings through salami slicing of services or tinkering around the edges, but in turn, looking more fundamentally at what we do and how we do it.  

“A key element is that we're considering how we can work closely with the expertise existing throughout the island.” 

P&R has asked the group to conclude its work by this time next year. 

Former P&R Vice-President, Deputy Heidi Soulsby, queried how a non-voting states member was chosen by “invitation only” and not through “an open and transparent process”. 

“We just wanted to get on with something. I've worked with these people for the last two and a half years or so,” he said, arguing that he has confidence in people “picking their particular teams”.