In the States, yesterday, there was this question by Jeremy Macon
Will the Minister outline the timetable for proposals for an additional waste charge to include –
- - Green paper stage
-- White paper stage
- Scrutiny review period
- Amendments post scrutiny review
- Lodging for debate
- Debate
Answer
"The MTFP has outlined the need for raising £3m in 2018 and £10m in 2019 on waste charges. To achieve the income the Department for Infrastructure have developed a range of options which are enclosed in a Strategic Outline Business Case Document which has just been produced. A summary of this Document has been presented to the Council of Ministers and has been shared with the Environment scrutiny panel."
"We are arranging a workshop with states members to discuss the report findings, possible funding options and timescales. This is to be organised as soon as practicable."
"The Council of Ministers will include their proposals for any additional charges within the MTFP Addition. In accordance with the Finance Law, this will be lodged on 30 June 2016, for a twelve week period before debate, giving States Members and Scrutiny sufficient time to consider the proposals in detail before they are debated at the end of September 2016. Provided proposals are approved, subsequent legislation will need to be brought to the Assembly, which will be subject to the normal process of review by Scrutiny."
My Comments:
It looks very much as if the matter is kept under wraps from the general public for as long as possible. Unlike other matters, there is no consultation going out for the public to comment upon. Instead, the document is shared with Scrutiny, there is no Green Paper or White Paper, and it is not even clear if a Scrutiny review will appear.
As usual, the changes mooted are put out in June, just before the States go into recess and it becomes very hard for the public to contact States members who have left for their summer holidays.,
Jeremy Macon asked a similar question of the health charge, and the reply was much in the same vein:
“In P.82/2012 Health and Social Services: A New Way Forward, the States Assembly approved the redesign of Jersey’s health and social care services and requested the Council of Ministers to bring forward proposals for a sustainable funding mechanism for health and social care. Accordingly, growth funding has been allocated in the MTFPs 2013-2105 and 2016-2019. The Council of Ministers will include their proposals for any additional charges within the MTFP Addition. In accordance with the Finance Law, this will be lodged on 30 June 2016, for a twelve week period before debate, giving States Members and Scrutiny sufficient time to consider the proposals in detail before they are debated at the end of September 2016. Provided proposals are approved, subsequent legislation will need to be brought to the Assembly, which will be subject to the normal process of review by Scrutiny”
Back in 2012, there was a consultation on Health Care, given by Anne Pryke, Minister of Health at the time, entitled “Caring for each other, Caring for ourselves”. There was a preliminary Green paper, then a White paper which said: “Welcome to the White Paper from Health and Social Services. We hope you enjoy reading it, and look forward to hearing your views. You can find out how to respond to the plans set out in the White Paper at the back of the document.”
The Green paper received almost 1,350 responses, and a White paper was produced, also open to public consultation, prior to legislative changes.
Clearly the new health charge and the new waste charge are deemed not to require any such consultation with the wider public, who in the meantime can supply their opinions on consultations on pheasants around Jersey or the country-by-country reporting under the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project.
When it comes to something which really matters, the Council of Ministers is clearly so afraid of public response that they are keeping everything hidden from view until the last possible minute, right at the end of the States sittings in June.
So why is a Green paper important? A Green Paper is a States publication that details specific issues, and then points out possible courses of action in terms of policy and legislation. Crucially, a Green Paper contains no commitment to action, it is more a tool of stimulating discussion, but it is often the first step towards changing the law.
White Papers which follow a Green paper are issued by the Government as statements of policy, and often set out proposals for legislative changes or the introduction of new laws. Proposals often emerge from a Green Paper process.
The changes which will bring in a health charge and a waste charge are going to affect every adult in Jersey so, right from the beginning, you might expect that the Government wanted people's opinions about the fundamental principles on how the charge will be designed, especially when we are told there is "a range of options".
Our legislative process is not being helped by a Government determined to limit public involvement. There seems to be an assumption that people do not have the right to participate in the details of what new laws say.
But if this does not happen, then the only public “consultation” will be through the accredited media, and social media. This is surely no way to obtain considered comment when introducing these important pieces of legislation.
Consultation should start at the early stages involving the public, and it would be helpful if the Council of Ministers avoided what increasingly looks like paranoid secrecy.
Will the Minister outline the timetable for proposals for an additional waste charge to include –
- - Green paper stage
-- White paper stage
- Scrutiny review period
- Amendments post scrutiny review
- Lodging for debate
- Debate
Answer
"The MTFP has outlined the need for raising £3m in 2018 and £10m in 2019 on waste charges. To achieve the income the Department for Infrastructure have developed a range of options which are enclosed in a Strategic Outline Business Case Document which has just been produced. A summary of this Document has been presented to the Council of Ministers and has been shared with the Environment scrutiny panel."
"We are arranging a workshop with states members to discuss the report findings, possible funding options and timescales. This is to be organised as soon as practicable."
"The Council of Ministers will include their proposals for any additional charges within the MTFP Addition. In accordance with the Finance Law, this will be lodged on 30 June 2016, for a twelve week period before debate, giving States Members and Scrutiny sufficient time to consider the proposals in detail before they are debated at the end of September 2016. Provided proposals are approved, subsequent legislation will need to be brought to the Assembly, which will be subject to the normal process of review by Scrutiny."
My Comments:
It looks very much as if the matter is kept under wraps from the general public for as long as possible. Unlike other matters, there is no consultation going out for the public to comment upon. Instead, the document is shared with Scrutiny, there is no Green Paper or White Paper, and it is not even clear if a Scrutiny review will appear.
As usual, the changes mooted are put out in June, just before the States go into recess and it becomes very hard for the public to contact States members who have left for their summer holidays.,
Jeremy Macon asked a similar question of the health charge, and the reply was much in the same vein:
“In P.82/2012 Health and Social Services: A New Way Forward, the States Assembly approved the redesign of Jersey’s health and social care services and requested the Council of Ministers to bring forward proposals for a sustainable funding mechanism for health and social care. Accordingly, growth funding has been allocated in the MTFPs 2013-2105 and 2016-2019. The Council of Ministers will include their proposals for any additional charges within the MTFP Addition. In accordance with the Finance Law, this will be lodged on 30 June 2016, for a twelve week period before debate, giving States Members and Scrutiny sufficient time to consider the proposals in detail before they are debated at the end of September 2016. Provided proposals are approved, subsequent legislation will need to be brought to the Assembly, which will be subject to the normal process of review by Scrutiny”
Back in 2012, there was a consultation on Health Care, given by Anne Pryke, Minister of Health at the time, entitled “Caring for each other, Caring for ourselves”. There was a preliminary Green paper, then a White paper which said: “Welcome to the White Paper from Health and Social Services. We hope you enjoy reading it, and look forward to hearing your views. You can find out how to respond to the plans set out in the White Paper at the back of the document.”
The Green paper received almost 1,350 responses, and a White paper was produced, also open to public consultation, prior to legislative changes.
Clearly the new health charge and the new waste charge are deemed not to require any such consultation with the wider public, who in the meantime can supply their opinions on consultations on pheasants around Jersey or the country-by-country reporting under the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project.
When it comes to something which really matters, the Council of Ministers is clearly so afraid of public response that they are keeping everything hidden from view until the last possible minute, right at the end of the States sittings in June.
So why is a Green paper important? A Green Paper is a States publication that details specific issues, and then points out possible courses of action in terms of policy and legislation. Crucially, a Green Paper contains no commitment to action, it is more a tool of stimulating discussion, but it is often the first step towards changing the law.
White Papers which follow a Green paper are issued by the Government as statements of policy, and often set out proposals for legislative changes or the introduction of new laws. Proposals often emerge from a Green Paper process.
The changes which will bring in a health charge and a waste charge are going to affect every adult in Jersey so, right from the beginning, you might expect that the Government wanted people's opinions about the fundamental principles on how the charge will be designed, especially when we are told there is "a range of options".
Our legislative process is not being helped by a Government determined to limit public involvement. There seems to be an assumption that people do not have the right to participate in the details of what new laws say.
But if this does not happen, then the only public “consultation” will be through the accredited media, and social media. This is surely no way to obtain considered comment when introducing these important pieces of legislation.
Consultation should start at the early stages involving the public, and it would be helpful if the Council of Ministers avoided what increasingly looks like paranoid secrecy.
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1 comment:
The MTFP has outlined the need for raising £3m in 2018 and £10m in 2019 on waste charges
This tells you pretty well everything you need to know about what is wrong with Jersey's government.
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