IT is highly improbable that Chief Minister Terry Le Sueur ever imagined that his role at the head of Island government was going to be either easy or uncomplicated.

However, it is equally unlikely that even a realist such as Senator Le Sueur could, at the outset, have forecast just how many challenges would queue up to be tackled before a new chief is chosen to lead the Council of Ministers.

In last week’s JEP Saturday Interview, the Senator spelled out what must be achieved in the next 18 months – the period available for concerted political action before minds become preoccupied by the next elections. As well as reviewing taxation and spending, States Members will have to cope with the pressures of formulating a new Island Plan, a new transport policy and a new migration policy.

Also on the schedule are an examination of the Waterfront Enterprise Board, issues arising from the ageing population, a new health strategy and problems on the pensions front.

Getting to grips with all this in such a short time will, without doubt, test the Senator’s powers of leadership. His task, moreover, will not be made any easier by those who, for ideological or populist reasons, will oppose him and the ministerial team at every turn.

Opposition and mechanisms for dissenting voices to be heard are, of course, vital features of our democracy, but the Senator is quite right to insist that Members must share his realism and refrain from being swayed either by doctrinaire attitudes or by strategies calculated to win votes.

As matters stand, Senator Le Sueur is promising that he will not seek re-election either as Chief Minister or as a States Member. The coming months, therefore, are his chance either to reinforce his reputation as a prudent, thoughtful politician who gets things done or to leave loose ends for his successor to tie.

Meanwhile, if the coming months will be of massive importance in terms of policy, they are also the time during which a small and, we must hope, select number of Members will jostle for position with a view to becoming the next Chief Minister.
At the moment, no one has an obvious claim to be seen as Senator Le Sueur’s natural successor, but there will be ample opportunity this year and next for the likely candidates to stake a claim as a credible future leader.