GUERNSEY has stopped investigating a possible move to Central European Time.
Chief Minister Lyndon Trott said the Policy Council had decided to defer any further work on the issue pending the outcome of Jersey’s October referendum on the subject. ‘We want to see how much support there is in Jersey first before we put any more time into it.’
That decision has been slammed by former deputy Peter Roffey. At the February States meeting he placed a requete for the States to agree in principle to make the move to CET by March next year.
The requete did not carry but was superseded by an amendment by the then-chief minister, Mike Torode, that directed the Policy Council to explore the possibility of moving time zones and to report back to the States by February 2009.
Mr Torode told members the issue would not be forgotten.
‘It’s certainly a breach of the promise that the former chief minister gave to the House,’ said Mr Roffey.
‘He said it was not a delaying motion and that work could begin on it in weeks. Now we are talking about a nine-month delay. But, more importantly, it should be an issue that the islands are looking at together.’
Mr Roffey said it was a case of history repeating itself in terms of Guernsey being too afraid to do something ahead of its neighbour.
‘It’s almost an inferiority complex,’ he said.
‘And the typical situation of us waiting to see what Jersey does first.
‘I think eight months between the amendment and the referendum was ample time for the islands to work on some of the practicalities together so that the Jersey public could have been properly informed.
‘It was also plenty of time for us to gauge the opinion of our own people.’
The Jersey public vote on their first-ever referendum on 15 October.
However, the people’s verdict will not be binding on States members and any change would have to be approved by the assembly.
The referendum will take place on the same day as the island’s constables’ and senatorial elections and will ask: ‘Do you think that Jersey should adopt Central European Time?’
An online poll at www.thisisjersey.com saw 55% reject switching to CET.
Article posted on 10th July, 2008 - 2.29pm
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