Policy Centre Jersey

Healthcare - moving from treatment to prevention

On 30 October the Policy Centre held a discussion meeting on moving healthcare from a concentration on treatment to greater emphasis on prevention. Dr Chris Edmond, Health Minister Tom Binet and Dr Patricia Tumelty made opening comments. Key points in the discussion -

Illness has a huge adverse impact on the economy. Investments in prevention are often seen as simply a cost whereas a cost benefit analysis would show significant benefits.
We need to do more than simply deal with specific problems but rather get people back to where they were so they can do their jobs properly – optimisation should be the aim.
We have an opportunity as a small island to be the best in the world in helping people to lead healthier lives.
Education is vital in changing behaviour and culture.

A more detailed note of the discussion is on the Policy Centre website.

Carbon Neutral Roadmap cannot be delivered

The independent Climate Council has commenced its review of the progress made by the Government of Jersey in delivering the Carbon Neutral Roadmap. The Policy Centre’s has in fact already completed such a review in its Policy Brief Carbon Neutral Roadmap. This concluded that the target of reducing emissions by 68% by 2030 compared to the 1990 baseline cannot be achieved. This would require an annual 7.4% reduction in emissions whereas the figures for the two most recent years for which figures are available are 2.9% in 2022 and 0.2% in 2023. The reason why the target cannot be achieved is that no measures have been adopted which could significantly reduce emissions.

Car parking decision conflicts with other Government policies

The States Assembly decided on 22 October that each new development should have at least one parking space per unit of accommodation. This represents a significant increase compared with the current requirements. At present there is no minimum requirement in parts of St Helier and in other parts of the island the minimum requirement depends on circumstances, in particular the availability of public transport. Commenting on the proposal the Environment Minister said that the proposal “removes choice from homeowners and developers, and contradicts the direction set by planning and transport policies that have already been approved by this Assembly.” The Centre’s Policy Brief Transport Policy includes details of those transport policies and the Policy Brief Carbon Neutral Roadmap also covers this issue.

Rate of inflation increases slightly but lower than a year ago

The Jersey RPI increased by 2.8% in the year to September 2025, 0.2 percentage points more than in the year to June 2025 (2.6%) but 0.2 percentage points less than a year ago (3.0% in September 2024). The rate of inflation in Jersey was 1.3 percentage points lower than the UK comparable figure. The RPI data has been included in an updated version of the Centre’s Policy Brief Economic Trends.

Business activity moderately negative

The all-sector business activity indicator was moderately negative in September with a balance of -12 percentage points, that is 12% more businesses were negative than positive. The expectation for future business activity was neutral with a balance of +9 percentage points. The survey is included in the updated version of the Centre’s Policy Brief Economic Trends.

Changes to election law not yet in force

The Elections (Senators) (Jersey) Amendment Law 202- , which provides for the reintroduction of senators, was approved by the States Assembly on 11 September. However, it has not yet been sanctioned by the Privy Council and registered at the Royal Court. As a result the substantive laws on Jersey’s electoral system have not been updated. When this is done the Centre will update its comprehensive Knowledge Centre paper Jersey’s political system and it Policy Brief 2026 General Election.

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