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The Policy Centre has published a think piece by its Senior Advisor Mark Boleat "Restoring trust in Jersey politics". The paper analyses evidence from Jersey, the UK and internationally on the extent to which politicians are trusted. It draws on research by the OECD to suggest how trust in Jersey politics can be restored.

The Policy Centre has published it comments on the Scrutiny Panel report on secondary education. The Panel’s report quoted extensively from the Policy Centre’s submission on the structure of secondary education and measurement of attainment. Key points from the Centre’s comments on the report are –The report is an excellent analysis of the state of secondary education in Jersey. Not only is the analysis high quality but the report also includes a wealth of data that is not otherwise available.

The Policy Centre has published two new Policy Briefs – Alcohol Licensing and Entertainments Licensing - replacing a previous Brief which covered both issues.

The Policy Centre has published a new edition of its Policy Brief onPopulation Policy, to include the latest annual review of population policy. The paper records the growth of the population over the long term but noting that the total population has now been virtually stable since 2018. Since 2022 the Council of Ministers has been required to maintain a “common population policy” and to update that policy annually.

On 9 December the Children, Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel published a report on Secondary Education Funding. A key finding in the report was that “there is a disconnect between the current system of academic selection in secondary education and the Government’s ambition to provide an inclusive education”. The Centre submitted evidence to the panel on selection at 14 and measurement of attainment, which is widely quoted in the report.

The Policy Centre held a discussion meeting on how Jersey can become a technologically advanced economy on 15 November 2024. Technology is the only industry capable of matching finance in terms of economic value to the Island. But it is not prioritised. Key points raised were immigration policy, regulation and skills.

On 15 November the Government announced a consultation on whether Beautiful Jersey should be adopted as Jersey’s national anthem and also whether Liberation Day, 9 May, should be adopted as Jersey's national day.The consultation is not accompanied by any analysis. The Policy Centre’s Knowledge Centre Paper, Jersey’s National Anthem , provides a comprehensive analysis of the issue, including the text and recording of the three alternative anthems – Beautiful Jersey, Island Home and Ma Normandie. The Knowledge Centre paper provides the essential information to enable people to make an informed response to the consultation.

The most recent report on house prices by Statistics Jersey is at first sight alarming. The 3rd quarter report, published on 7 November, reported that average prices were 12.0% lower than a year earlier. The fall was particularly pronounced for 4-bedroom houses (19.7%) and 1-bedroom flats (15.5%).The Centre’s Policy Brief on Housing has been updated to include the new data. The Brief includes calculations of the fall in house prices and rents taking account of the rise in prices generally -

The Policy Centre Jersey aims to improve the quality of the discussion on public policy issues. It therefore warmly welcomes the publication of the report by PwC and the Jersey Community Foundation.

The Policy Centre held a discussion meeting on energy policy on the morning of 26 September 2024. 45 people participated - members of the Centre’s Advisory Council, representatives of business and government and people interested in the subject.The discussion followed the publication of the Centre’s Policy Brief on Energy policy.

The Policy Centre has published a new Policy Brief Alcohol and entertainment licensing. The Brief explains the current Licensing Law and arrangements for approving entertainments, analyses the concerns about current arrangements and describes the various attempts at reform with as yet no action being taken.

The Policy Centre has published a new policy brief – on the important subject of Energy Policy . Jersey is a consumer rather than a producer of energy. The Brief seeks to explain all aspects of energy supply and consumption in the Island and analyses key policy issues. The Brief draws on the latest statistics including the annual Energy Trends report published by Statistics Jersey today. Key points made in the brief are –Energy consumption in Jersey has fallen by 44% since the mid-1990s and there has been a significant switch away from electricity being generated from oil to electricity being generated by nuclear and hydro power.

The Policy Centre has published its Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2024. The Report details the research that has been undertaken, meetings held and papers published in its first full year of operation.In his introduction to the Report, the Centre’s Chair, Alan Merry, said – We have made great progress. In little more than a year, the Centre is well on the way to becoming firmly established as the source of authoritative analysis on key policy areas relevant to Jersey.

The Policy Centre held a discussion meeting on regulation of taxis on the morning of 26 July 2024. 26 people participated - members of the Centre’s Advisory Council and representatives of business and government.The discussion followed the publication of the Centre’s Policy Brief Regulation of taxis.The meeting was chaired by Simon Soar, Director of the Centre. Opening comments were made by Sir Mark Boleat, the Centre’s Senior Adviser.There was then an open discussion.

The Policy Centre Jersey in a paper on secondary education has called for a review of the policy of selection at age 14 and for meaningful value-added figures for each secondary school so that they can be compared with each other and with schools in comparable jurisdictions.The Centre has submitted evidence to the Children, Education and Home Affairs Panel of the States Assembly which is currently conducting a review of secondary education funding. The Centre’s response concentrates on the 14 plus secondary transfer system and educational outcomes.