From Clifford Wilson.
REFERENCE your article in the JEP of 20 May, it appears we are now finally being put on notice, following a few months of political softening up, that Jersey’s population is to be ‘allowed to rise’.

This, to my mind, shortsighted and entirely fiscally motivated resolution, will only serve to further dilute that vitally important ingredient that has hitherto made this Island a lovely place in which to live. The vital ingredient being, of course, no less than ‘quality of life’.

Jersey is already fast becoming over populated resulting in the usual detrimental features that are borne as a consequence of over population, such as pressure on road systems.

Our roads network is becoming overcrowded, that congestion resulting in an erosion of a sense of tranquillity. Over population is also exerting pressures on our existing housing stock, resulting in a risk of piecemeal development within what is arguably our Island’s very pièce de resistance – its remaining lovely countryside.

Finally, and most importantly of all, over population is having an irreversibly detrimental effect on that indefinable, but most precious asset of all, our quality of life. It will be no good whatsoever beating the drum about the superior quality of the Island’s beaches; 100,000 people will not be living in Jersey just to sit on the beach, however golden the granules of sand may be.

It is, I believe, time that each and everyone of us, the electorate, should seek to instill in the mindset of all our politicians that there is not an inevitable correlation between fiscal sufficiency, or for that matter fiscal excess, and quality of life.

That quality is not simply measured by wealth and materialism, but rather by an inner instinctive sense of what creates for the individual a good and balanced state of being.

Budget surpluses are all very well and, indeed, may be desirable, but should never be garnered at the expense of the quality of life of the people. That is a sacrifice too far.

The wealth creation device commonly known as ‘growing the population’ is a flawed one in so far as the application to a small island community such as Jersey is concerned and should be discarded forthwith. Once such a devise has been allowed to commence to run its course, then there is virtually no going back.

In these challenging economic times, we must not allow ourselves to be coerced into accepting fiscally motivated governmental policies which would have profoundly negative and irreversible effects upon qualify of life for us and for future generations.

The Island population needs to be maintained at certainly no more than the existing level.
Le Châtelet,
Route d’Ebenezer,
Trinity.