A COUPLE of comments from the Treasury minister as we reported yesterday have confirmed what has been an open secret in States circles – but one that was incapable of confirmation ‘on the record’ – that the future of the island’s open market has been under serious consideration.

One proposal has been that it be scrapped entirely and that the properties revert to local market status and the occupants’ right to residency (or otherwise) be controlled in some other way.

This, of course, has the potential to become hugely controversial, not least because of the effect on individuals of the value of their properties suddenly becoming devalued as a result of government policies.

However, what happens to the open market is just one aspect of a wide-ranging review that is likely to prove more contentious for the island than even the introduction of the original zero-10 strategy.

At its heart is the concept of how Guernsey controls its population while ensuring that it has a labour force capable of delivering its economic requirements – including paying for what is an increasingly ageing community.

This issue was last raised in earnest late in 2007 when the Labour Utilisation Strategy Group was formed and one of its objectives was to examine ‘how the open market can be used to best advantage as part of the island’s future’.

But the real point is what level of control this island wants over those who can have the most effect on increasing the population: locals who have left the island and want to return.

The existing housing laws bite on only about 6% of the population and any review has to look at whether that should be changed in future and if it is right for long-term absent islanders to be able to retire here, with all the cost consequences for health and social services.

Jersey, by contrast, has a much younger age profile because of the way it handles its residency issues while Guernsey drifts towards becoming a pensioners’ paradise.

The future of the open market is clearly a hot topic – but it is just one element of a very difficult package for the island to consider.