From Professor Stanley Perkins.
AS someone who has a strong interest in democratic reform of parliamentary governance, I was surprised to read in the Jersey Weekly Post (17 September), that ‘Jersey will have a general election in 2011 with all Senators, Constables and Deputies being elected on the same day’. Further, the article does not mention the terms of office for Senators.

After reading Ben Quérée’s excellent informative article ‘Put Your House in Order’ in the Jersey Weekly Post (10 September), one could not help feeling disappointed at the politicians’ lack of will for real democratic reform for Jersey – when, as Mr Quérée points out, Guernsey (pop 65,573) has 45 Deputies, the Isle of Man (pop 76,512) has 24 Deputies and Jersey (pop approximately 91,000) has 53 Members in the States.

As the Review Panel on the Machinery of Government in Jersey, December 2000, states on page 4: ‘Among the most outstanding complaints: There are too many Members in the States.’

On page 5, the panel’s report avers: ‘The role of the Senate should be abolished. The panel received no convincing evidence that there is a significant difference between the nature and the content of the Senator’s role in the States and that of Deputies.’

If Jersey’s politicians insist on retaining Senators in the States, then they should be using the bicameral model of parliament in which Senators would sit in a separate upper house for a sober second thought – but this would be an expensive and unnecessary model for a small island like Jersey. Since, as the Clothier Report states, there is no significant difference between the role of Senator and Deputy, the role of Senator should be eliminated.

Also on page 5 of the panel’s report, the following: ‘The Constables should cease to be ex officio members of the States.’

(The Constables are, in effect, similar to mayors and in parliamentary democracies mayors of large cities do not sit in parliament.)

Most democracies adjust their constituency boundaries after each census through an independent commission. It is completely illogical if one is truly concerned with approximate representation by population to have one representative representing 796 residents in St Mary and another representative representing 2,732 residents in St Clement, as Mr Quérée wrote in his article. It surprises me that a civil rights organisation has not challenged such disparate representation in the courts.

Nine years ago the States requested advice from the Clothier Panel regarding a governance model for the States. Why are Jersey’s politicians so resistant to implementing the advice the Clothier Panel recommended?

Jersey’s politicians should be embarrassed when they compare the governance model for the States to the governance models of Guernsey and the Isle of Man. One day the Jersey voters will elect politicians who will prioritise real democratic reform for the good of the community over their own personal aggrandisement.