Latest news with #KristinaMoore
BBC News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
States rejects proposal for chief minister public vote
The States Assembly has rejected an "entirely unworkable" proposal to have the position of chief minister elected via a public vote. In a States meeting on Wednesday, former chief minister Deputy Kristina Moore proposed the role should be elected through an Jersey-wide vote, held in parallel with the general election. Ms Moore said the change would boost public engagement in the elections and "offer the electorate a greater level of transparency".The assembly rejected the proposition by 43 votes to one. Ms Moore was the only member in favour. She said: "Accountability of the role of chief minister within the public arena is lacking as voters do not have a say on who should be elected to the role. "Voters should be provided with the opportunity to indicate their preferred candidate for chief minister during the voting process." 'Presidential system' Ms Moore added it was possible under her proposal that an individual with no political experience might be elected."If this were the case, it is anticipated that the electorate would have made the decision based on the clear leadership qualities of the candidate who would be supported by the professional civil service in the transition," she said. Deputy Sir Philip Bailhache said the idea was "entirely unworkable.""There is a fundamental distinction between a presidential system and a ministerial system," he Kirsten Morel added the proposition would "turn the election into a presidential election".He said: "In an island of 100,000 people there is no place for a presidential election. "It would be damaging, it would be divisive and it would ultimately turn the island in many ways against each other, I fear."
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Call for pensions reform to help ageing population
A business consultant has urged the Jersey government to introduce statutory workplace pensions to help improve quality of life for an ageing population. Kevin Keen said the government should introduce measures ensuring staff were automatically enrolled in work pensions unless they opted out. Jersey's government was criticised last summer for shelving plans for auto-enrolment pensions. It comes ahead of a conference looking at how the island can address the challenges of people living longer. Under the leadership of Deputy Kristina Moore, the previous Council of Ministers had been developing policies to force businesses to offer workplace pensions to their staff. However, the current social security minister, Deputy Lyndsay Feltham, changed course, saying her priority was to "support employers and workers in the transition to a living wage". Speaking in August last year, she said: "Planning for retirement and planning for pensions into the future is a very good thing. "We know that not all employers are currently offering pension schemes, and I would encourage employers to do that. "But I think it's a very difficult thing for me... to have said to people that they need to put money aside for the future when they can't afford to put bread on the table now." The minister said work to introduce a workplace pension scheme had been paused and her hope was it would restart within the next 12 months. Mr Keen said auto-enrolment schemes, used by other countries, should be implemented in Jersey. He said: "Guernsey have got that, Australia have had it since 1992, the UK had it since 2012. Jersey is sitting on its hands for some reason... they really should get a move on and get that started. "The earlier you start saving for your retirement the more chance you've got of, what's called, compounding - helping build your savings." Jersey's first conference to consider how the island needs to adapt to the population getting older takes place later in May. The Island of Longevity conference has been organised by a group which feels islanders need to work with government to "reimagine ageing" and shape a future "where living beyond 100 becomes the norm". The island's latest population report showed the number of people aged 75 and over was expected to increase by around 50% over the next 20-30 years. Co-founder Joe Dickinson said: "More and more people will start to live longer so how does that affect the way we live? Employment, education, health - all these issues need to be addressed." The conference is on 21 May at Jersey's Pomme D'or Hotel. Jersey statutory workplace pension plan shelved Life expectancy two years higher than England
ITV News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
Bid to make Chief Minister selection a public vote only receives a single backer... the proposer
A former Jersey Chief Minister has failed in their bid to change how the person for the top job is selected. Deputy Kristina Moore proposed that the Chief Minister should be elected through an island-wide vote, which would be held in parallel with the General Election, rather than being selected after polling day by fellow politicians. However, not a single one of her colleagues supported the move - with 43 votes against. Deputy Moore was the only one to vote in favour. Deputy Sir Philip Bailhache called the plan "entirely unworkable". The Housing Minister, Deputy Sam Mézec, commended Deputy Moore for looking to change the electoral system, which he described as "inadequate". However, he concluded that the proposition "had more holes than a sieve" and "would lead ultimately to chaos". Deputy Philip Ozouf said, "Unlike other members, I'm a Jerseyman and I respect Jersey traditions". After a number of opposing speeches, Deputy Montfort Tadier added, "Do we need any more reasons not to vote for this?" Before the vote, Deputy Moore said, "If nothing else, this proposition has got people talking - not us in here, but those people outside who we represent. "Ultimately, this is a proposal aimed at increasing our voter engagement and improving transparency in our democratic system." It took an hour for the decision to be reached as a total of 10 speeches were made during the proposition debate.
BBC News
18-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Panel to look at 'acceptable levels' of PFAS in Jersey water
An independent panel of scientists will look at whether regulations on the acceptable level of potentially harmful chemicals in Jersey's water supply need to (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances), also known as forever chemicals, were present in firefighting foam used at the airport fire training ground in the early 1990s and leaked into the neighbouring area and private borehole water Minister Deputy Steve Luce told the States Assembly that the panel's report would be ready by said the report would also help inform any treatment solutions Jersey Water develops to tackle PFAS levels in the water supply. Responding to questions from Deputy Kristina Moore on the progress of technology to treat water to remove PFAS, Luce said: "I'm committed to ensure safety and quality of our water supply and protected public health."And that's why I've asked an independent scientific PFAS panel to prioritise water regulation and treatment options."I anticipate an interim report from the panel in the summer, which will allow me to recommend a more stringent regulatory standard of PFAS levels in mains water and to inform the treatment solutions adopted by Jersey Water to achieve this new standard."However, the minister warned it could take "five or six years" to build the required treatment plants to meet any new said: "In the UK, it would be normal to give five or six years lead-in time."The infrastructure needed to achieve to these levels is not something that's going to be built in six months. It's going to be a considerable piece of development and we will need to consider very carefully where it goes and how it's built."Deputy Inna Gardiner said she was concerned by that said: "I've learned that, when in Australia they recognised the issue, the plant was built within six months, so there are technologies around the world available."We are not the only one dealing with it and I'm worried about having an extensive timelines to deal with the situation."
