From the Summit of the Moral High Ground

Philip Ozouf offered a mea culpa for his recent behaviour.  He promised to be a good boy if  the States let him stay on. CTV said he was just 'misunderstood' provoking a reaction in the Chamber. "The high contacting parties undertake to hold free elections at reasonable intervals, under conditions which will ensure the free expression of the opinion of the people in the choice of legislature ." Extract from the European Convention on Human Rights. Freedom of expression of the opinion of the people is inconceivable without  the assistance of a plurality of parties (Yumak & Sadak v Turkey). Clearly the elections gave the public no clear choice in the composition of the legislature, there was no attempt to ask the public who should be in charge of each department, we get what we are given and we have to just lump it. If anyone ever takes a case under Article 3 of Protocol 1 of the Convention to the Court then it is impossible to tell what they will do with our ...

Historical Archive This article is preserved as part of the historical record of this blog. It reflects the author's views at the time of publication. The content has not been substantively altered, although the HTML, accessibility and formatting have been updated to meet modern web standards. We were told Jersey would be saved from economic catastrophe if the government straightened the Avenue. The first stimulus worked, apparently, and all we needed to bring back prosperity was more government stimulus. Stimulus might appear to work for some people for a short time. For a while they could pretend to be engaged in productive activities that would help the economy. Employment might temporarily rise, but these were not long-term jobs, the capital spent did not remain in Jersey, nor did the wages of those employed. The government is a terrible venture capitalist. "Biggest targeted improvement in taxation for families with young children the island has ever had...