Emergency Planning Officer role to be cut

Friday 23 October 2015

Jersey's Emergency Planning Officer is leaving his post 18 months after taking it up, and he's not going to be replaced.

Joe Carnegie took up the role of the Island’s Emergency Planning Officer in April last year, but will be leaving next month. A review is being conducted into the Island's emergency planning processes, but he's not going to be replaced.

A spokesman for the Chief Minister's department said that they were going to rely on the existing expertise in the police, fire and ambulance services instead.

The spokesman said: “As part of the ongoing public sector reform programme, the unexpected resignation of the current Emergency Planning Officer due to relocation abroad has enabled a review of the Emergency Planning Unit to see if this work can be undertaken in a more cost efficient and flexible way by utilising the experience and expertise within our emergency services and wider States departments.

“This follows the recent successful implementation of the Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Programme which improved how the emergency services work together at major incidents, and the expansion of the local Joint Emergency Services Group (JESG), which champions greater collaboration and joint working between those organisations tasked with protecting the public and responding to major incidents."

Last year the police, honoraries, fire and ambulance services and coastguard had joint training involving national experts from the UK, putting into practice updated procedures which have been adopted across the UK since the 7/7 bombings. Earlier this year they put that training into practice when they were tested to see how they deal with a major incident - the scenario involved a rogue gunman running amok in the Island.

The spokesman said: “The States remains committed to the security and safety of the public during major disruptive events. Significant progress has been made over the last few years in creating a modern emergency planning/resilience structure and it is only right to review how best to reinforce and develop this progress within the current financial climate."

The States haven't revealed how much money they'll save when Mr Carnegie leaves but they say a review of emergency planning is due to be completed before he goes on 6^th November 2015.