Minister blames media over land sale u-turn

Thursday 12 July 2018

In what appears to be a classic case of 'shooting the messenger', a senior Minister has lambasted the media for their reporting of a story - despite that reporting being fully supported by the relevant official documents.

It seems that the Infrastructure Minister, Deputy Kevin Lewis, is trying to keep the purchase of land for the new Les Quennevais School on track, without the need for a compulsory purchase by the States - and so has blamed the media for reporting that an official government document clearly stated the owners of three fields in St. Brelade had changed the amount they were prepared to sell the land for from £194,100 to around £4,000,000.

But despite that official report published in March, the Minister is now saying that isn’t true.

At the time, the news of the revised sale figure led former Minister Eddie Noel to conclude that the States might have to use its power of compulsory purchase – the ability to buy land without the owners’ consent.  

“Unfortunately, despite lengthy discussions and having agreed a fair and proper price with the owner, it has not been possible to conclude the transaction. This means the only option available is to acquire the land through compulsory purchase,” he stated. 

Education Minister at the time, Deputy Anne Pryke, warned that the sellers’ attempt to renegotiate the price could delay the opening of the new school.

A report accompanying the Ministers’ comments described the owners' revised sale figure as a “significant departure” from what had been agreed. It said that the price of £15,000 per vergée had been changed to £16 per square foot – 20 times the States’ original offer.

The report also detailed that the owners requested: “Limiting future use of the Land to only contain elements of the school (in particular, sports field, sports hall and wildlife area), preventing subdivision and alienation of any part of the Land sold other than as a single corpus fundi, restricting the use of the sports field beyond 9.30pm, not to have any flood lighting or PA systems installed within the school or sports field, [and] no organised events to take place on the sports field on Sundays or Bank Holidays.”

Pictured: The Infrastructure and Education Ministers said back in March that the field sellers had asked for £4million and that this could lead to a delay in the school's opening - the States now deny this.

But since then, the official version of events appears to have changed, with the earlier version branded as "misinformation."

A new statement issued following a meeting between the owners, the new Infrastructure Minister Deputy Kevin Lewis and “his team” stated that contrary to earlier official reports, there was an agreement over the sale price for fields. 

“The media subsequently reported that (the owners) had demanded £4 million for the sale of his fields, and...asked for use of the playing fields to cease at 9.30pm every night.  The Minister wishes to make clear that (the owner) had not demanded £4 million, and that while a request was made to limit activity on the playing fields after 9.30pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays, this was not simply for the benefit of (the owners) but for all the nearby residents,” it read.

Furthermore, it contained a scathing comment from Deputy Lewis, who stated: “Politicians do not control the editorial direction taken by media organisations. However, I would like to apologise for the distress caused to (the owners) by the media coverage of this case. It damaged goodwill and led to a halt in negotiations. I hope the new Ministerial team can resolve this matter in a spirit of cooperation, hopefully without the additional public expense of concluding a compulsory purchase.”

Pictured: New Infrastructure Minister Deputy Lewis accused the media of having "damaged goodwill" between his department and the field sellers. (Vote.je)

When asked about the clear discrepancy between the States’ recent comments and their previous position, Deputy Lewis declined to elaborate on the statement.

“I don’t have anything other than that to add as I’ve only been in the department for a few weeks. I’ve been away for three years… There’s an awful lot to do, I’ve a huge pile of papers on my desk,” he told Express.

States officials also declined to provide further information on the matter.

Talks remain ongoing, with the Minister having made an offer for the land this week. States officials said that they were hopeful of an amicable conclusion to their discussions, and that the Minister would only consider compulsory purchase if this is not possible.