Guest Post from Deputy Carolyn Labey

Carolyn Labey, Deputy of Grouville has told me that she will be voting YES in the Referendum on the Constables remaining in the States. She does, however, wish to raise a couple of points which are listed below.

Guest Post by Deputy Carolyn Labey

As an Option C supporter and therefore supportive of the Constables, Island wide mandate and Deputies, I would like to make a couple of points, as I don't agree with some of the views being expressed by some 'Yes Campaign' promoters and supporters:-

 (A) I was extremely disappointed that the majority of the Constables did not actually support the retention of the parish boundaries by supporting super-constituencies;

(B) that the argument of 'unfair representation' being used to support super-constituencies, (which would go some way to the erosion of the Parish system), makes the argument for keeping the Constables in the States contradictory. How can the Yes Campaign then promote the St Mary Constable and a St Helier Constable representing a difference of many thousands of people - far more than the differences between Deputies. The Yes Campaign can either accept some differences in representation or not - but it cannot, with any credibility, accept it for the Constables and then call it unfair for the Deputies.

(C) Personally I am not so concerned about the numbers as I believe the retention of the Parishes as their own entities and identities to be far more important. Likewise the grass roots constituency work is equally important. I am more concerned with the fact that the Ministerial jobs which hold responsibility for Island issues, e.g, Chief Minister, Treasury, Health, goes to those who hold an Island wide mandate and everyone is given the opportunity to vote for them.