IN MANY respects, yesterday’s endorsement by the States of the international identity framework understanding between the island and the UK was a lose-lose situation.

The first casualty – for all that the Policy Council would have islanders believe otherwise – was a weakening of the island’s perceived relationship with the Government. It may have been subtle and it may be years away before it becomes significant, but it is nevertheless deterioration.

For while the UK cannot act on the Bailiwick’s behalf without consent, for all the notion of it being ultimately responsible for the islands’ good governance, the framework implies that all that is necessary is consultation followed by imposition.

Yes, that is specifically in the international context but the forthcoming review of the Channel Islands as financial centres indicates how blurred these distinctions become. ‘Consultation’ the Friday before the review was announced was Guernsey being told, ‘This is what we are going to do’.

Given the niceties of these things, that was sufficient to prevent a constitutional clash but, as Jersey’s chief minister rather chillingly put it, the review remains an examination of the long-term sustainability of that island’s policies governing its finance industry.

Interestingly, as Guernsey’s chief minister explained why the framework was such a good development, he actually catalogued various wordings from other documents showing how Guernsey’s position has been eroded over the years.

It really made no sense at all, but States members bought it hook, line and sinker.

What the majority were interested in was the second casualty – the executive authority of the chief minister and Policy Council.

As we have argued, the framework was the wrong issue for him to go out on a limb but it underscores – just as much as the deputy chief minister’s ‘joke’ – the difficulty of operating effectively without power.

Guernsey’s system of government needs further reform so that the council and its head are provided with the authority to achieve States strategic policy.

Currently, Treasury and Resources is washing its hands of any responsibility for controlling public expenditure and there is nothing the chief minister or the council can do about it.

And yesterday’s vote undermining the chief minister’s authority shows that much-needed change is as far away as ever.