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Politicians are this week debating and voting on the Government's £1.3bn budget – with amendments covering a wide range of topics including alcohol duty, Fort Regent, a youth centre, Stamp Duty, charity funding, and even a 'Play Strategy'.
Express took a look at what has been discussed so far...
A draft version of the money plan was first published in August, with Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham hailing the '2025 Budget' – rebranded from the ‘Government Plan’ – as a “commitment to building a secure future for Jersey”.
Yesterday’s States sitting began with a proposal from the Council of Ministers that the States Assembly approve their Government Budget 2025-2028, as amended.
In her opening speech, Treasury Minister Elaine Millar described the Budget as a "funded and balanced plan".
Pictured: Treasury Minister Elaine Millar said that the Budget "balances investment with prudence, growth with sustainability and action".
She outlined key priorities, such as tackling the cost-of-living crisis by increasing tax thresholds, supporting local businesses through duty freezes, curbing growth within the public sector, and funding health services.
Deputy Millar concluded: "The 2025 Budget is a robust, forward-looking financial plan that places islanders at the heart of our decision-making.
"It balances investment with prudence, growth with sustainability and action.
"By investing in our island, supporting our community, and preserving our resources, this budget lays the foundation for a resilient and prosperous Jersey.
"Together, we are shaping a future where Jersey remains fair, thriving and responsive to the needs of its people."
There were 29 amendments lodged, ten of which were accepted or partially accepted by the Council of Ministers, and two were withdrawn.
Those that have been accepted by the Council of Ministers are:
Amendment 4: Public Services Ombudsman – The Corporate Services Panel lodged an amendment that asks the Council of Ministers to fully consider consultation results when considering the appropriate way forward in the establishment of a Public Services Ombudsman; and to bring forward proposals for States approval in 2025.
Amendment 5: Apprenticeship funding and support – The Children, Education and Home Affairs Panel lodged an amendment to review the scheme available for apprenticeships and increase the funding and support available.
Amendment 7: Connect Me project funding – Deputy Louise Doublet lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to reduce Cabinet Office funding by £86,215 and to use this to fund the Connect Me project through Customer and Local Services.
Amendment 10: Funding for the Termination of Pregnancy (Jersey) Law – The Health and Social Security Scrutiny Panel lodged an amendment to allow for funding for the Termination of Pregnancy (Jersey) Law to ensure both policy and law drafting resource for this
Those that have been partially accepted by the Council of Ministers are:
Amendment to Amendment 3. Statistics Jersey Funding – The Corporate Services Panel lodged an amendment to the Government Budget, that Statistics Jersey Funding should be increased by £157,000 through the reallocation of other Cabinet Office expenditure. The Council of Ministers then lodged an amendment to the Corporate Services Panel amendment, which would reduce the increase in funding to Statistics Jersey to £78,000.
Amendment to Amendment 9: Pillar 2 allocations – Deputy Hilary Jeune lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that the £15m annual revenue projected to be received as a result of the new Pillar Two Corporate tax changes, which the Government is allocating towards the ‘competitiveness of the Island’, should be focused on funding the delivery of a Sustainable Finance Action Plan and supporting the transition to a net-zero economy. The Council of Ministers then lodged an amendment to amendment 9 which takes out the words ‘funding for’ from Deputy Jeune’s amendment, leaving it to read ‘focused on’ but not ‘funding the' Sustainable Action Plan and supporting the transition to a net-zero economy.
Amendment to Amendment 11: Vehicle emissions duty – The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Panel lodged an amendment to increase Vehicle Emissions Duty for non-commercial vehicles with the top three highest CO2 emissions – those above 151 grams - by 10%, 15% and 25%; and increase the transfer of monies from the Consolidated Fund to the Climate Emergency Fund in line with this higher revenue. The Council of Ministers then lodged an amendment to the Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel’s amendment, which would see Vehicle Emissions Duty for non-commercial vehicles increasing above those proposed in the Budget, only for those with CO2 emissions above 176 grams, keeping the third highest band at 5%.
Amendments to Amendment 18: Play Strategy – Deputy Inna Gardiner lodged an amendment to make an allocation of £66,000 within the Funding for Public Realm budget to take forward the work to deliver a Play Strategy for Jersey. The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to this which replaces the allocation of £66,000 from the Public Realm budget to instead utilise existing resources, and agree with Deputy Louise Doublet's amendment wanted to include the work of the Jersey Youth Parliament, ‘Right to Play’ Group and of the previous Play Strategy Steering Group in the Play Strategy.
Amendment to Amendment 23: St Helier’s Neighbourhood Improvement Area programme – Deputy Inna Gardiner lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to request additional funding from the States of Jersey Development Company of up to £500,000 to support St Helier’s Neighbourhood Improvement Area programmes, recognising that a matching allocation will also be made by ratepayers of the Parish of St Helier. The Council of Ministers then lodged an amendment to Amendment 23 which would see funding for the Neighbourhood Improvement Are come from existing Rolling Vote Public Realm budget.
Amendment to Amendment 24: Agricultural Loan restriction – Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to restrict the provision of Agricultural Loans from being used for the purposes relating to the cultivation of cannabis. Deputy Hilary Jeune lodged an amendment to Deputy Philip Ozouf’s amendment, which would clarify that Agricultural Loans are not used for the cultivation of cannabis that will be used in cannabis-based products for medicinal use. Then, the Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to Deputy Philip Ozouf’s amendment, which would reduce the amount available through Agricultural Loans for the cultivation of cannabis; ensuring the loans represent no more than 10% of the total funding allocated to the Fund, and that no individual loan is greater than £250,000.
The amendments that were withdrawn were:
Amendment 13: Fuel duties – Deputy Jonathan Renouf had lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that asks Ministers to return to the policy of indexing Fuel duty to RPI from 2026, with an additional increase of 2 pence per litre above RPI to increase the allocation of fuel duty receipts into the Climate Emergency Fund. This has now been withdrawn.
Amendment 15: Highlands College repairs – The Children, Education and Home Affairs Panel has lodged an amendment to remove £1.04million from the Broad Street public realm project and to provide that funding for refurbishment and repairs of Highlands College. This has now been withdrawn.
The amendments or parts of amendments which have not been accepted are debated in the order in which they effect the proposed Budget, not necessarily in the order in which they were lodged.
Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to the Budget asking for a Stamp Duty holiday in 2025 that would allow properties up to a value of £700,000 to pay no Stamp Duty, with Stamp Duty levied at 2.5% on properties valued between £700,000 and £1million, and a taper for properties valued between £1million and £1.2million.
Under his proposals, properties over £1.2million would remain subject to Stamp Duty at the full rate.
A further amendment from the Deputy asked to exclude buy-to-let properties, reducing the income from Stamp Duty by £10.5million.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT the amendment with seven votes for, 36 votes against, and one abstention.
Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to the Government Plan asking that Stamp Duty in 2025 is reduced by £2million to reflect the removal of the current higher rate surcharge on the sale of second homes for one year, in order to promote a positive increase in the sale of residential properties.
The Council of Ministers lodged an amendment to the amendment which would see the higher rate surcharge reduced to 2% instead of the Deputy’s request of 3%, therefore reducing the income to £665,000 rather than £2million.
The States Assembly voted to ACCEPT the Council of Ministers’ amendment to the amendment with 30 votes for, 14 votes against, and no abstentions.
The States Assembly voted to REJECT Deputy Ozouf’s amendment, as amended, with 23 votes for, 24 votes against, and no abstentions.
Deputy Philip Ozouf lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to restrict the provision of Agricultural Loans from being used for the purposes related to the cultivation of cannabis.
Deputy Hiliary Jeune lodged an amendment to the amendment which would clarify that Agricultural Loans are not to be used for the cultivation of cannabis that will be used in cannabis-based products for medical use.
The States Assembly voted to ACCEPT Deputy Jeune’s amendment with 27 votes for, 18 votes against, and no abstentions.
The Council of Ministers lodged a second amendment to the amendment which would reduce the amount available through Agricultural Loans for the cultivation of cannabis; ensuring the loans represent no more than 10% of the total funding allocated to the Fund, and that no individual loan is greater than £250,000.
However, the Deputy Bailiff ruled that following the States Assembly’s adoption of the first amendment to Amendment 24, the second amendment from the Council of Ministers should fall away
The States Assembly voted to REJECT Deputy Ozouf’s amendment, as amended with 18 votes for, 25 votes against, and three abstentions.
The debate continues today, with the order of amendment as follows:
Amendment 20: Jersey Business and Digital Jersey Savings – The Economic and International Affairs Scrutiny Panel has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that seeks to lessen the proposed cut to Jersey Business and Digital Jersey’s funding by £286,000 each year, by transferring from the Central Reserve.
Amendment 1: Increase grants to States Funds – Sir Philip Bailhache has lodged an amendment to increase the Grant to the Social Security Fund which secures pensions, by £10million, which is back to its full formula value; and to decrease the grant to the Consolidated Fund by £10million. Read more: bit.ly/3ZfGK6p
Amendment 17: Le Squez – Deputy Karen Wilson has lodged an amendment which seeks to increase the Head of Expenditure to Le Squez by £2,500,000 and to decrease the Head of Expenditure for ‘Infrastructure Rolling Vote and Public Realm’ by the same amount.
Amendment 19: Fort Regent development – The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Panel has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to transparently identify funding provided by Government to its chosen development partner for the programme of works on Fort Regent; and to identify a sustainable funding model.
Amendment 22: Digital Services platform – Deputy Alex Curtis has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that seeks to reduce funding for the Digital Care Strategy by £400,000; and increase the funding for the Digital Services Platform.
Amendment 6: New Healthcare Facilities Programme expenditure – The Hospital Review Panel has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget asking Ministers to provide a breakdown of expenditure for the new Healthcare Facilities, showing separate budgets for the Overdale Acute Facility, Kensington Place Ambulatory Facility, and St Saviour’s Health Village.
Amendment 16: New office – Deputy Philip Ozouf has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget which opposes the proposed acquisition of the new Government Headquarters using the Social Security (Reserve) Fund; and to delay the acquisition.
Amendment 12: Performance Framework – Deputy Hilary Jeune has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that would see sustainable wellbeing embedded within all business-as-usual activities in conjunction with Ministerial plans and portfolios. Including how funding to third parties actively contributes to sustainable wellbeing, is aligned with the Future Jersey vision and is monitored in line with the Jersey Performance Framework.
Amendment 8: Indexation of alcohol duty – Deputy Helen Miles has lodged an amendment to ask the Government to commit to the reinstatement of the indexation of alcohol duty in line with RPI from 2026. Alcohol duty has been frozen for the past five years due to the economic climate.
Amendment 29: Small distillers relief – The Council of Ministers has lodged an amendment to its own draft Budget, to reduce the production ceiling for distillers eligible for duty relief, from 40,000 litres a year to 20,000 litres, in order to focus on genuinely small producers.
Amendment 9: Pillar 2 allocations – Deputy Hilary Jeune has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that the £15m annual revenue projected to be received as a result of the new Pillar Two Corporate tax changes, should be focused on funding the delivery of a Sustainable Finance Action Plan and supporting the transition to a net-zero economy.
Amendment to Amendment 9: Pillar 2 allocations – The Council of Ministers have lodged an amendment to amendment 9 which takes out the words ‘funding for’ from Deputy Jeune’s amendment, leaving it to read ‘focused on’ but not ‘funding the' Sustainable Action Plan and supporting the transition to a net-zero economy.
Amendment 3: Statistics Jersey funding – The Corporate Services Panel has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget, that Statistics Jersey Funding should be increased by £157,000 through the reallocation of other Cabinet Office expenditure.
Amendment to Amendment 3: Statistics Jersey funding – The Council of Ministers has lodged an amendment to the Corporate Services Panel amendment, which would reduce the increase in funding to Statistics Jersey to £78,000.
Amendment 21: Transform Project – Deputy Alex Curtis has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget that reduces the project total for the Customer and Local Services programme TRANSFORM by £10million over the next three years to ensure value for money and increase the Social Security Fund.
Amendment 2: West of Island Planning Framework – Deputy Helen Miles has lodged an amendment to the Government Budget to allocate £100,000 from within the Public Realm budget to prioritise work on the West of Island Planning Framework, as referenced in the Bridging Island Plan.
Amendment 14: Jersey Cheshire Homes – Deputy Inna Gardiner has lodged an amendment to provide an additional £200,000 of funding from the Health and Community Services budget to Jersey Cheshire Homes to provide for one year of bridging funding to ensure provision of services in 2025 for adults with disabilities.
The States Assembly will then vote on the Government Budget as a whole, and as amended by those above which have been passed.
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