From Roy Travert.
IT will come as no surprise to the majority of normal level headed people that the finance industry has now been officially recognised as being in decline, and has in fact recorded an all time low for profit per employee.

This very fact will have a devastating effect on the projected tax receipts for our Treasury department for the foreseeable future.

I have written to your paper on more than one occasion about the financial stability of our economy, our government’s lack of political will to resolve our present financial deficit and the excessive spending regime that is still prevailing amongst our States Members.

Senator Ozouf is presently conducting a public consultation exercise on how we would like to pay more taxes for the excesses of his predecessors and our present government’s over spending.

He is seeking views from the public on how to save money and what actions he should take. I would like to give mine through your column, if possible:

lRemove the excess of upper and middle management that is prolific throughout the States. Currently over 500 earn in excess of £70,000.

lRemove the gold plated pensions that these same people enjoy that the taxpayer has to pay for.

lIncrease the retirement age for civil servants to that of the taxpayer, for fairness and equitableness.

lStop subsidising landlords and property developers with rent rebate and shared equity housing schemes. The taxpayer pays again.

lChange company tax whereby all companies pay the same, local and offshore.
lReduce and remove the number of Quangos subsidised by the taxpayer. WEB should be a good start.

lReduce the number of highly paid accountants who work at the Treasury department (as advertised in the JEP, 1 July) for £73,681.)

I have no doubt that Jersey’s finances are in a precarious position and hope that Senator Ozouf finds favour with some of these suggestions and starts to implement savings with a reduction in States expenditure sooner rather than later.

Finally, we should remember that it is the States who have continued to increase their own expenditure against an economic backdrop of recession and job losses. This is the wrong policy to pursue. The more you tax people the less money will be available in the economy for economic recovery. This must be avoided at all costs. The States should spend less and tax less.

In the words of Thomas Jefferson: ‘A departure in principle in one instance becomes a precedent for another…’til the bulk of society is reduced to mere automatons of misery…and the fore-horse of this frightful team is…public debt. Excessive taxation follows that…and in its wake wretchedness and final oppression…let us resist it with all that is within us.’
Thomas Jefferson died in 1826 – a man way ahead of his time.