ALDERNEY States members highlighted at their meeting last night the need to take immediate action on capital projects. Despite reporting a good financial year in which income had exceeded expenditure, it became apparent that many urgent public works needed to be started.

Deputy chairman of Policy and Finance Colin Williams said that for the third year in a row capital expenditure was slipping and this had to change to address the island’s ‘crumbling infrastructure’.

Richard Cox agreed with Mr Williams and said that in May or June the States should get a serious analysis of what needed to be done.

Richard Willmott, the chairman of Policy and Finance, said: ‘The continued slippage in the capital programme is of considerable concern.

‘I am pleased to report that since the beginning of the year much work has been done in this area and proposals will be brought before the May or June States to discuss the prioritisation and plans for delivery of the essential infrastructure, housing and other long-awaited projects,’ he said.

Apart from the slippage of capital expenditure, Mr Willmott emphasised what a good financial year the island had had.

He said the States had kept a tight control on expenditure managing, for the seventh year running, with a revenue allocation from Guernsey that had increased by only 12% in absolute terms.

The success story of the annual accounts was the revenue generated by the gambling industry.

Having its best year ever, the gambling commission reported profits of £1,325,000.

Mr Willmott said that it was believed that Alderney’s gambling licensees now accounted for around half of all the telecoms bandwidth and a material amount of Guernsey’s electricity consumption.

‘Post zero-10, the recipients of these revenues, which are classified as utilities, will continue to pay tax which will be of considerable benefit to Bailiwick funds,’ he said.