PEOPLE living near the new schools at Les Nicolles will be put onto the main drain. The States yesterday approved by two votes a requete led by St Sampson’s deputy Ivan Rihoy to get the work carried out at the same time.
Speaking after the debate, which saw the requete approved by 21 votes to 19, Deputy Rihoy said it had been a victory for common sense.
‘The majority of members realised this was the sensible option because when the initial plans for the schools were put forward not enough consideration had been given for the roads within the area,’ said Deputy Rihoy.
‘We had the chance today to rectify it and we did.
‘It must be seen that this is not a new scheme. I believe the whole island should be on the main drain, but in this particular area it is essential that work be carried out now,’ he said.
It is estimated by Public Services that it will cost £850,000 to connect about 55 households and the money will be taken from the States capital reserve.
‘Regardless of budgets and the Government Business Plan, we must be flexible when circumstances like this arise,’ said Deputy Rihoy during the debate.
‘Whatever we do with the road-management scheme, that area is going to be highly dangerous and we have to make it as safe as possible for children and their parents once the schools are open.’
Deputy Scott Ogier said the householders around Les Nicolles had already suffered upheaval and deserved to be connected.
‘These residents have been waiting so long for this and had so many broken promises.
‘The main drain should be brought forward as a priority. We know there is a capital budget and we will be spending the capital budget next year,’ he said.
Deputy Mike O’Hara said the House could not solely focus on budget but be ’strong’ and make the right decision.
‘It makes common sense to put a sewer in while the new school is being finished. I think anyone will think it’s common sense,’ he said.
‘You can imagine the desperation of the public should the sewer go in at a later date. It just wouldn’t make sense.’
Deputy Bernard Flouquet said Environment, Treasury and Resources and Education had made a mistake when they did not include the main drain for Les Effards in the plans for Les Nicolles.
‘We made a mistake and this requete finds an approach for putting this mistake right,’ he said.
Education minister Martin Ozanne, in support of the requete, said the House needed to look at the whole picture, the extra cost of digging up a road that had just been laid and the traffic problems that would come with that once the schools were open in spring 2009.
‘Common sense would say we would do this in conjunction with the development taking place.’
Public Services minister Bill Bell, who opposed the requete, said his department did not have the money to carry out the work and if it raised the Les Nicolles area from priority eight to top of the list, it would make no difference because the money would still not be available.
Deputy Treasury and Resources minister Jonathan Le Tocq said it did not make sense to spend money that was not available.
‘It has been argued that this is a special case, but I can think of many other departments, including Education and Health, which would say there are many other special cases.’
He said departments should not be ‘micro-managed from the House floor’.
‘We cannot do this and we should not do it,’ he said. ‘We must stick to what we have decided and not tinker around with budgets.
‘We must be robust. Treasury and Resources do not have the funds to give towards this,’ he said.
Chief Minister Mike Torode said the Policy Council could not support the requete. ‘If you keep bobbing and don’t stick to the budgetary process, what will we have brought to the House next month?’ he said.
Health and Social Services member Barry Brehaut said he was strongly opposed to the requete.
‘I asked the Chamber what would you give up to make the requete happen?’
He said the ’special case’ argument was not good enough and that his department, more than any other, could come up with many ’special cases’.
Article posted on 11th October, 2007 - 12.00am
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