Societe Jersiaise Lunchtime Talk: The Introduction of Social Security

A really stimulating talk on the controversy surrounding the introduction of Social Security legislation into Jersey was given by former Deputy Roy Le Hérissier at the Societe Jersaise meeting room this Wednesday.

It was well attended, and the acoustics of the room were good, a microphone provided excellent audio coverage for those of us who are hard of hearing, so it was all clearly heard. A PowerPoint presentation on a large screen supplemented the presentation.

It would be a compulsory contributory insurance scheme - hence the original name of Social Security being "Insular Insurance" which I have to admit being old enough to remember when doing accountancy preparation on client's accounts back in the 1970s. Because of that - as a contributory insurance scheme to cover outgoing costs, and ringfenced - and therefore not a tax on income as such - a cap was placed on the maximum contributions made, which still exists today.

It also was not a full "Welfare State" scheme. It provided old age pensions, sickness benefit, and an offset to doctor's bills (but not a complete offset of all the bill, just a reduction). Parish welfare staid in the hands of the Parishes until the introduction of Income Support, which also wrapped in a number of extra and additional parts of Social Security which had grown - disability support, attendance allowance for severely disabled, rent rebate scheme etc. That also meant that Social Security and Income support was not a "like for like" substitution as its critics said (it also had its own critics).

It also had a different age date for pensions - 65 for men, 60 for women, which has only just ended recently in favour of equal age (65 and over).

Philip Le Feuvre

The people involved in bringing the bill were Philip le Feuvre, a stalwart of the farming community and elected president of the JFU, and who had also been part of the Jersey Progressive Party and served under Deputy Edward Le Quesne in the Occupation years, Deputy Stephen John Venables, the sole member of the Jersey Democratic Movement to be elected to the States at that time, and also from a farming community (in St Ouen), Senator J.J. Le Marquand, a passionate libertarian who opposed the compulsory nature of the law.

Philip Le Feuvre presented the Bill to the States on 15 November 1949. The vote on the preamble was lost 24 to 23 and the Bill was automatically thrown out with it. However this itself was controversial as one Constable was absent and his vote taken by his Chef de Police (Senior Centenier) who attended the States - the law was later changed to prevent this occurrence as this was essentially a vote by someone  who had not faced a public election in the same way as a Constable for being present in the States. Ten of the Constables also voted against it.

The demographics also favoured the country vote over the urban vote - a situation which continued until the recent reforms - the Senatorial platform always was weighted as island wide voting to country, not town . Their removal and the introduction of larger districts has meant better representation for urban areas.

On 22 May 1950 Le Feuvre brought the Insular Insurance Bill back to the States. In spite of opposition from Senator J.J. le Marquand the preamble passed by 28 votes to 17. It passed its third and final reading on 14 July 1950, and came into force on 18 November of that year. 

In spite of a final attempt at a wrecking amendment by Senator le Marquand, the appointed day (the date when the insurance scheme would come into full force) was set to 10 September 1951.

On 31 July 1951, Deputy J J Le Marquand presented a Petition at St Ouen’s Parish Hall calling for the appointed day to be deferred. The organisers were efficient and it gathered momentum, aided by the attitude of the Honorary Police, some of whom broke the law by collecting signatures. Philip Le Feuvre went out to meetings where those presiding did not assist him in getting a fair hearing.

J.J. Le Marquand was a firebrand speaker and organised rallies around the island, especially being noted for mass crowds in the Royal Square, where the mood turned ugly, and some States members had to run to the Police HQ for their own safety after leaving the States. It was the nearest the Island has come in the 20th century to an insurrection. Potatoes, tomatoes and other missiles were thrown at supporters of the new law. 

At one of these rallies a coffin was carried in as a visual aid, calling for the death of the new law (or perhaps to fill with one of its architects), as well as an effigy (perhaps of Venables). JJ was not above any stunts! 

My father, who had recently started work, and who saw part of his pay would be reduced under the law, remembered attending the rallies.

Also in 1951 the Deputy Venables (the other architect of the new law) attended a meeting of 1,500 people protesting against the new Insular Insurance Law in the People’s Park. When a vote was taken he was the only person to raise his hand in favour and ended up having to escape to the Town Hall. Similarly, on the day when the legislation was finally passed there were ugly scenes in the Royal Square, where according to the Daily Graphic potatoes, tomatoes and other missiles were thrown at supporters of the new law.

The debate also raged in the JEP, where Le Feuvre and Venables - the architects of the scheme, and the scheme itself was denounced as being "the hand of Moscow", "socialism by the back door", "a UK style Welfare state which the Island didn't need" and worse. It was ironic as Philip Le Feuvre was a member of the Jersey Progressive party and very much a conservative politician, but who had seen the need for change.

The farmers were resolutely opposed, and after the scheme was passed held a special meeting of the JFU where they unceremoniously and vindictively demanded the elected President's resignation - as a farmer, that was Philip Le Feuvre himself.. He was ostracised by his own farming community. However, the office block in La Motte Street which houses the Social Security Department was named Philip Le Feuvre House.

J J Le Marquand died at the age of 60 in 1975. He never collected his pension.

For further reading, an interview with Topic magazine plus some notes at:

http://tonymusings.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-political-outsider-jj-le-marquand.html

S.J. Venables

Stephen Venables died on 13 January 1988 in Jersey at the age of 78, and was buried in St. Saviour, Jersey. He did collect his pension.

Pictured below is Eric Falla, who as a young man, attended JJ's rallies in the Royal Square, and the speaker of this talk, Roy Le Hérissier.