Sark Sports Club member Gail Le Lievre and treasurer Chris Elgie hold the bat presented to the club by the Guernsey Taverners. (Picture by Peter Tonks, 0692195)

ONLY a week has passed since the announcement that the Barclays were ‘pulling the plug’ on Sark, but as the dust settles so a semblance of Sark’s post-apocalyptic future is emerging.

To an outsider, Sark has been showing all the symptoms of bi-polar disorder – from the elation of most after the election to the despondency of many faced with uncertainty following the withdrawal of the Barclays’ investment.

Offers of support at government level from the three offshore Crown dependencies and the donations made to the Seigneurie Garden, to the Procureur of the Poor and via the Submarine Charitable Trust’s website have given the islanders the comfort of knowing that they are not alone. Reports from the Mermaid disco held last Saturday evening are of a wonderful, almost family atmosphere, with everyone in great spirit and a healthy amount of hugging. That sounds like a typical Saturday night to me.

Roger Olsen, as president of GP&A, Sark’s foremost committee of Chief Pleas, was quick to issue a statement to the effect that while help is appreciated, the island is not in crisis and not at a ‘critical stage’. Indeed, people have mobilised quickly and offers of work have been forthcoming on both a permanent and temporary basis. The figure has been quoted of 38 islanders having lost their jobs and the remainder being ‘itinerant’.

Sark does take care of itself and its own and there is little doubt that those who are from here or have committed to a long-term future on Sark will find other work.

That does not mean that the remaining 90 or so ‘itinerants’ will simply disappear. No doubt many will return to their homes, but some have made a significant move in the last year in transferring to Sark, involving themselves in the community and making it their home. The fact that they do not appear on the electoral roll does not exclude them from consideration.

My old boss always said that there’s no such thing as a problem, just an opportunity. It was probably plagiarised, but it is true and for some there are opportunities to start their own business. Indeed, Sam Higham and Rodney Lalor this week have launched the Island Building Company Ltd, which currently employs five people, and they will undertake everything from a wall to a house.

‘We’re thinking positive and looking forward to the future,’ said Mr Lalor.

Sark is in a political interregnum at present, with major decisions having to be deferred until the new Chief Pleas meets in January. This would suggest that there is no authority for anyone to negotiate with the Barclays on co-opted seats on committees until the House is convened and the committees’ members allocated. Whether or not this leaves the door open for a concessionary role to be offered to Kevin Delaney has yet to be discussed and decided. From brief conversations with key members of the new Chief Pleas it would appear that there is little desire or scope for compromise.

Certainly it seems that in the war of words the Seigneurial side – if it can be described as such – has won the PR offensive so far. There is no doubt that they are riding the crest of a wave of confidence, feeling secure at what appears to have been a huge electoral mandate. Such is the confidence that a press statement was issued by the Sark authorities downplaying people’s perceptions of crisis and questioning the level of the Barclays’ investment and the role that they have played on the island. Fronted by the Seigneur, Michael Beaumont, it was issued by the Sark authorities, whoever they may be, with the foreknowledge of Mr Olsen, but without the prior knowledge of the rest of his GP&A committee.

When I spoke with Mr Delaney he was clearly annoyed at the content and wording of the statement and in particular at the reference to the ‘Barclays’ tax avoidance schemes’.

‘How does it sound to you?’ he asked. I shall be interested to see what happens with that one.

No doubt aware of their position in the Christmas ratings, Mr Delaney was precise in his statement: ‘We will make sure that nobody is out of work. We will enjoy our Christmas knowing that nobody will have the immediate fear of unemployment hanging over their heads.’

Anticipating that up to 30 people will be employed by the end of the week, he went on to say that sufficient funding had been provided to employ those workers for four to six weeks and that it will give them the chance to find other work.

He continued on to confirm that Sark Estate Management businesses would be opening from April for the summer season 2009. The Aval du Creux and Dixcart hotels would be open from 2 April until the end of October and would be run as seasonal hotels. The businesses in the Avenue will be let on a commercial basis but, as Mr Delaney stresses; ‘they’ll have to wash their face’. The outcome is that the Barclay capital investment plan is no longer.

It means that Sark is effectively back to what it was two years ago and that, come the winter, many jobs will disappear and people will either have to leave or find alternative work; but Sark’s hospitality industry will be open for business.

Penny Prevel in the Visitors’ Centre has noted an upswing of brochure requests at what is normally a quiet time of year, with most enquiries attributed to Sark’s news profile.

Indeed, with a weak pound and France so close, Sark’s tourism will hopefully fare well in 2009.

That means we have a year to come up with another international news story.

Mention must be made of the Lords Taverners, who have presented Sark Sports Club with a cheque for £34,647 following the 10th anniversary game in Sark in July.

Sponsored this year by Sark Estate Management, there is currently no sponsor for next year’s game on 5 July. A delighted Dr Stephen Henry, the club’s new president, stressed how vital it was for ‘providing sport for the young on the island and allowing us to put some by for a rainy day’.

Finally, in a public meeting on Wednesday evening, Sark Shipping director Robert Taylour scotched the rumour of the company’s imminent demise.

He very clearly stated that the company was not going into liquidation and that subject to Chief Pleas adopting the board’s recommendations, Sark Shipping would have a viable future.

On that happy note, merry Christmas everyone.