From Alan West Gillham.
IT’S an ill wind. The current global credit crunch heartache does, at least, give the Island an opportunity for a complete reassessment of where its future lies.

Equally fortunately, we are due to have a man in the States who, one can believe, will have the depth of character and common sense to determine what the Island needs, rather than a further excess of ego, be it of politicians or executives.

Hopefully, following the election of Deputies, there will be others of the requisite calibre to support Senator Ian Le Marquand’s quest for truly responsible government. One would hope that the results of the Senatorial election will have been enough of a shock to the system of those such as PFC (US military rank: Private First Class) Ozouf to make them think again about where they are going.

Further hazards ahead, which may prove to be self-destructing, are the prospects of Senator Le Sueur succeeding in his claim for the position of Chief Minister. To reinforce this, he is maintaining that the Island will escape the effects of the credit crunch and the acknowledged global recession. Due to his efforts? One wonders which crystal ball he is using now.

The truly dramatic fall in the value of the pound, which will inevitably affect the Island’s economy when compared with both the US dollar (for all its being the catalyst of the crisis), as well as the euro, has obviously passed him by.
Senator Le Sueur is seemingly joined in this ‘ostrich’ approach by Geoff Cook, the chief executive of Jersey Finance, who continues to emphasise the need for the pre-1989 East Berlin housing development of Esplanade Square.

This indicates that he totally ignores the impact of utterances by such as Barack Obama, EU members, and indeed Chancellor Darling, regarding tax havens. When dire, previously unknown, circumstances prevail, normally well adjusted individuals and their advisers will make decisions solely with their own, national, electorate in mind.

The least one can hope for is that this Mad Hatter scheme is lodged au greffe for at least three years.
7 Ruelle Vaucluse Court,
St Helier.