Call for ministers to go
Wednesday 11th June 2008, 3:00PM BST.
THE States were in disarray this morning after a dramatic 24 hours in the Esplanade development fiasco.
Senator Jim Perchard resigned from the Waterfront Enterprise Board after learning that WEB chairman Gerald Voisin is also on a subsidiary board of AIB, the bank behind developers Harcourt.
Today, Senator Stuart Syvret said that he would be bringing a vote of no confidence in the Council of Ministers. He has described the whole affair as ‘complete chaos’.
Meanwhile, a group of States Members have formally asked for the entire Waterfront debate to be brought back to the House so that it can be debated again following reports of the lawsuit.
Deputy Gerard Baudains – the first Member to raise the issue of the Las Vegas lawsuit against Harcourt in the States last week – has the backing of Deputies Bob Hill, Alan Breckon, Roy Le Hérissier and Geoff Southern, who are all asking for the States to debate the matter again.
Yesterday Deputy Chief Minister Terry Le Sueur faced a barrage of questions in the States about the revelations. He was standing in for Chief Minister Frank Walker, who is holidaying in Bermuda this week.
Senator Le Sueur told Members that the Council of Ministers would share further ‘due diligence’ reports on Harcourt before the final agreement for them to begin work was signed.
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How fortuitous that Senator Perchard found out about Voisin at this time. I wonder how long he has known about this… and just when things were getting hot…you know that minor thing about misleading the States…well, it’s all forgotten now…so he will be able to sleep well tonight being that he is back on dry land.
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Wow shocking!! thankfully I don’t live in Jersey anymore…
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Frank Walker should tender his resignation upon return to the island. He has shamed the office of Chief Minister.
He claims “I don’t believe I have ever been so annoyed in my whole political career”, yet he’s obviously not quite annoyed enough to cut short his holiday in Bermuda to deal with the problem.
This begs the question, what exactly is he being paid for as Chief Minister?
During the Haute de la Garenne furore the Daily Telegraph referred to Jersey as having a “banana-republic style of governance”. Walker’s continued absence at this hour of crisis only serves to enforce that image.
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Frank Walker should be sacked for the way he conducts the business of governing Jersey. His manner, aggressive responses and bad decision-making should NOT be qualities of a Chief Minister. The man is an embarrassment.
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Typical, Franks gone for a job interview in Bermuda! Hope he gets its.
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Well back to square one, but “hey ho”, we will now pay the conultants some more, waste more time and put up with an eyesore for a few more years. Who will pay for this? We will, with GST set to rise to 7% in 2009 and at least 10% in 2010, to meet not only consultants fees but the increase in wages for the States workers. Who will take the blame? No one. Perhaps a solution to this however is to move the next States sitting to the Giant Ferris wheel that already sits on “our” waterfront, the only think missing from it are “our” politicians sitting in it as it goes around and around and around in circles.
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Usual comments so far!
I agree that the States have mishandled both the planning and the reporting of the development of the reclaimed land at the waterfront. However I think that we should remember two aspects:-
Firstly, it was the predecessors of the current members who rushed ahead with the very expensive reclamation operation without having any plan whatsoever for the development of the newly available space. Quite astonishing. At least the current States members with the obvius exception of “Senator” Syvret, a man without any planning capability at all, have attempted, albeit incompetently, to put forward a plan and to create it.
Secondly, the States members are supported by an extraordinarily large civil service. In almost every sphere the advice, forecasting, business planning and even the general execution of agreed plans have been deplorably inept.
In this case what checks were applied and what views were expressed to the relevant States ministers and members by this vast but apparently incompetetnt civil service.
If the States members should go they should be preceeded by all the senior and middle ranks of the supporting civil service.
Finally, Harourt Developments have indeed been served with a claim for damages in a Nevada Court ( we can all look it up as I did ).Before everyone starts running round in circles at high speed it is worth observing that this is not uncommon in the commercial world and a much closer examination should be made of the plaintiff, GSG, and their track record and motives in the Sullivan Court mattter in Las Vegas.
However as I have observed above what on earth persuaded the States in general and their advisors that Harcourt had the financial strength and development capability for this very important task.
If Portelet can be returned to nature perhaps the waterfront can be landscaped sympathetically
as a natural park for all of us to enjoy until global warming takes it’s toll. Oh, and please keep the new wheel.
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Harcourt say that they knew about the law suit 10 or 11 days before the states debate.
However both Walker and Perchard have said that Harcourt were denying knowledge of the law suit at the time of the debate.
These are mutually exclusive statements. Who is lying?
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oh dear oh dear….Im sooo glad i’ve left the island of my birth….what a complete shambles eh?
Walker should go,so should Cohen and the rest of the clowns….Im reading this latest debacle from the other side of the world,and shaking my head every day as more bad news comes out from the Island…
will the last one’s to leave please turn the lights out?
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Iain, it’s all very well to say “If the States members should go they should be preceeded by all the senior and middle ranks of the supporting civil service”, but have you never heard the phrase “the buck stops here”?
If the staff of a shop mis-priced all the goods, and the Manager eagerly and firmly OK’d it, the Manager would be held responsible by Head Office.
Ultimately Frank Walker, the man at the top of the ladder, made crucial statements (which turned out to be wrong) which influenced the direction of the final decision. 20 seconds spent on Google prior to the debate would have revealed more than enough about the Harcourt lawsuit.
Are we now to excuse Walker such an enormous mistake on the basis that he shouldn’t be thinking for himself?
Putting that aside, he’s still sunning himself in Bermuda when he should be here handling the problem.
He’s shown himself unfit for the job of Chief Minister (and not for the first time), so he should do the honourable thing and resign.
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Most of the people I have spoken to are disgusted and against the change of the Waterfront. The ministers are meant to represent the islanders, I think it should be an Island vote, let the people talk, whether we should have it or not, before spending all our money!
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Cracking comment from Mr Walker! “Are you suggesting that every time we get an assurance by a third party we should double and triple check it?” (JEP 12/06/08)….DOH….YES!
Well,…looking back…would you not think that may have been a teensy bit prudent?
How can Mr Walker possibly be surprised that people are up in arms about this fiasco!
I can’t wait for all the financial interests to be published for everyone involved!!
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PRINTED IN IRISH TIMES ON 2ND MAY 2008
NOT 22ND BUT 2ND!!
“Las Vegas developer sues Irish company over project
A COMPANY backed by businessman Pat Doherty and former broadcaster Mike Murphy is facing a legal battle in the US over a €500 million Las Vegas property development.”
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Overpaid, overrated and over there (Bermuda)!!! Time to get your coat Mr Walker!
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