Revealed: the 25% higher cost of living in Guernsey
Tuesday 13th September 2011, 9:30AM BST.
FAMILIES need at least 20% more to live here than their counterparts in the UK.
An investigation into Guernsey’s minimum income requirement has found that different households typically needed 20% to 30% more than in the UK.
Pensioners needed more than 40% extra.
The research, conducted by Loughborough University, aimed to find the minimum amount required for people to have what islanders considered necessary to participate in society.
That included children being able to take part in school extracurricular activities, being able to go on at least one week-long holiday off-island, and celebrating Christmas.
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Hardly an epiphany
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Tell us something we don’t know…………….!
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Rip off Guernsey, but as already said above, no surprise really. I’d like to see it broken down a bit giving further details of where exactly that extra money is needed. Is it just the house prices? Bills? Luxuries?
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……and how much did this earth shattering research cost us?
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I doubt if employers will take much notice of this, they will probably just use it as justiication for increasing ‘unemployment’ benefits to freeloaders.
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I would say it cost a PHD or some such qualification.
Secondly it is probably wrong, your house prices are probably double a like for like property in south east England (excluding London)
Not complaining, just saying what I have seen.
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what a surprise, they could have asked me and saved a lot of money.
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“Matt of the Vale” could have told them that a!
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I think these constant comparisons to “The UK” are somewhat ridiculous. Are we talking about an average across the whole of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and their varying economies? Surely it would be more useful to compare with similar sized communities in various different parts of the UK. The same goes for school exams results in my opinion. If people are wanting to compare life in Guernsey to that in the UK an average from the whole country really isn’t going to help much.
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Beanjar, you’re wrong and ignorant to accuse the recipients of unemployment benefit as freeloaders. Just for the record, unemployment benefit is only paid to those that are insured for it, i.e. worked and paid for it.
Further, the recipients of unemployment benefit have found themselves in an unfortunate predicament and can do well without such derogatory comments which only serve to discriminate against them.
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Hmmm – not so sure about this.
A lot of the costs of living are actually cheaper here – rates, water, electricity, tax etc.
Fuel is either cheaper or on a par with the UK (with the exception of gas).
There is no VAT so large ticket items such as cars are cheaper. Most other “luxuries” can be ordered via the likes of Amazon less VAT so, again, are cheaper.
Also, assuming that Waitrose are not fleecing us blind, we would pay very similar prices to those in the UK. Ok we don’t have Aldi, Primart etc but there isn’t a huge differntial any more.
So what makes the difference then? Housing and travel?
Well travel is result of living on an island and is a different argument really.
Housing, whilst expensive, is relative to disposable income so I can’t see the difference being made up to 40% by that…
Perhaps its a perception or people can’t be bothered to shop around.
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I find this research difficult to believe when you hear of UK council taxes alone costing between £1000 and £3000, people paying £100s each week for petrol, VAT, higher income tax…
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I think a lot of the difference is because we are comparing apples and oranges – and the rest is a mixture of misconception and a ridiculous assessment of what is actually necessary for a comfortable life.
Firstly the ridiculous assumption that a car is absolutely necessary in Guernsey – I can state from experience that it isn’t !! And conversly there are large parts of the UK where it is necessary- so if you want to compare like for like there should be figures presented with and without car ownership costs in both the UK and Guernsey.
Secondly, do the UK figures include a one week foreign holiday for all ?
Thirdly, is everybody having hampers flown in from Harrods and Fortnum and Mason ? From a recent trip to the UK I can say that shopping is at worst the same, and in many cases a lot cheaper over here ( with the notable exception of bread and milk )
And finally there is what is considered essential expenses – from what I’ve heard of the focus groups that helped compile this load of dross, everybody should be entitled to satellite TV and hundreds of pounds a month to pay for a babysitter whilst they go out pubbing and clubbing !!!!
All I can say is if benefits are going to be based on these numbers, then I hope the means testing for university grants ups its allowances to match …..
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Gilthead you only need to go into a Tesco or the likes to find out how much cheaper food is, even the likes of a bottle of wine in a restaurasnt or bar is the same price or even cheaper in some places in the UK, we are being ripped off here now.
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OK Gilthead. As all one has to do is shop around for a cheap life on Guernsey please tell me where I can get a freshly baked full sized loaf on the island for 40p.
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John – there really isn’t a huge difference between supermarkets here to those in the UK.
Wine is cheaper here. Eating out is cheaper here. So is a pint.
Tony is pretty close to it…
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coyote. I’ve seen them in England for less than 30p. We are right, royaly ripped off.
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To Stephen (aka ‘Mr. Pedantic) Since I have only paid contributions and never received a penny my whole life I am not expert in the precise names of every benefit paid out to Guernsey’s workshy minority. Since you obviously are an expert, what should I call benefits paid out to the scroungers who sit back whilst the rest of us provide for them? Is it some bogus ‘Trainee’ title, ‘Jobshirkers Allowance’ or something similar? Hundreds are idle whilst licences get dished out to thousands – shame on Guernsey!
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Gilthead
Eating out is cheaper on Guernsey? Beer is cheaper on Guernsey? Whatever you are on I’d like some of it.
Starter and main course or main course/ dessert £5.95 in the UK. A bowl of soup can cost £6 in the St Peter Port restaurants and have you ever looked at the price of a beanjar in Cobo. Ouch! Ouch too on the West Coast for £3 for a cake; £2.80 for a piece of shortbread. In the UK similar size shortbread is 60p-80p and the strawberry tarts which sell for £3 each can be had for 90p in Haworth, heart of the Bronte country and a top tourist attraction of the sort of fame Guernsey only dreams about. Fish and chips on Guernsey is at least £4 a time; in the UK £2.80. Beer is around £1.80-£2 per pint in the UK. On Liberation Day on the West Coast I paid £6 for a pint!
I suggest you actually go to the UK and look at its prices Gilthead.
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Why is Guernsey more expensive – greed!
On Saturday I visited four electrical shops for an audio-visual item- in EVERY case, the price quoted was, at the very least, as expensive as the full UK RRP (including 20% VAT) and in two cases, quite a bit more expensive! In one shop I was told (in so many words) that I was lucky to have the selection of goods to be able to buy in Guernsey and the price was the same as the UK because it cost more than 20% to post goods to the Channel Islands. In one shop when I asked if they had what I was looking for, the “assistant” simply gesticulated with his finger and said yes, over there on the top shelf” and carried on messing with the paper till-roll and chatting to his colleague! Needless to say, I walked out of the shop as there was no “staff discount” for serving myself! So much for “rip-off Guernsey”! I voted with my feet – my daughter went into a non-chain high street shop on Monday in Bournemouth and purchased the item for £26.99 less – allowing for postage saved me £17 and I have still paid 20% VAT to Mr Cameron! So Guernsey has lost the lot – shopkeepers, don’t complain that you do less business and have to load the price to compensate, because it hits us all, consumers and traders alike.
GleP
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Beanjar (or is that JB)? Yes I have been called pedantic before, usually by the people I correct in the spelling of my name.
In answer to your question I have no idea as to what such benefits are called, contrary to your assumption, I am not an expert.
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Coyote
you might want to eat one of the 40p loaves available in the u.k. but i wouldn’t. It aint rocket science staff paid 30% more than in the u.k. electricity 20% more, no economies of scale, rents sky high. If you want to pay 40p for a loaf of bread go and live in a deprived area of the u.k. you’ll be able to buy a house for £70,000 but there will be no work, very high crime rate. Typical Guernseyperson you want your cake and eat it.
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I wonder how useful this report really is.
I expect a small island economy to be more expensive to live on, it’s simply a matter of scale. I think we’ve got this idea in our heads that just because we have low income tax and no VAT everything should automatically be cheaper. It’s not as simple as that though as there are other factors to consider. Large retailers like Tesco can knock down prices even with VAT and there is automatically more competition in a larger economy.
In terms of the content, as pointed out by GsyLdn it is difficult to make direct comparisons with the UK as exactly which part of that nation are they referring to? For example, housing and living costs in London are considerably more than Bradford. In terms of direct comparisons there are also the different rates of taxation, national insurance etc.
Then there are some pretty vague categories, such as the cost of celebrating Christmas. This can vary considerably from family to family, with some spending thousands on parties, entertainment and the latest toys and gadgets whilst others can get by on less than £100. It depends how much money you have and how materialistic you are.
In terms of the report itself I wonder how useful such a report is to the average person on the street, unless you’re thinking of emigrating that is.
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Gilthead,
Get yourself to Asda and do a weekly shop — I would guarantee that what you would pay £200 for in Guernsey would cost you about £140-£150 and be a lot better as well.
I’d agree we have cheaper tax, fuel and rates but certainly our electricity and water are more expensive, I’d also argue that you would get a good bar meal cheaper in the UK than locally.
Why do you think our town shops are dying?
Because you can either go to a superstore in the UK or order off the internet for a fraction of the local prices, and as for house prices there is no contest, admittedly UK prices have gone up but you would still get a mansion with pool, stables and acres of land in certain areas for the price of a local semi!
When everything is taken into consideration I’d have to say that the investigation is probably quite realistic, I’m struggling to see how you could think otherwise.
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Well said coyote I too have not long come back from a holiday in the UK it is cheaper to eat out in the UK wine is no dearer than here the price of essentials such as meat bread and milk is cheaper. Gilthead get your self over there and have a look.
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coyote – I lived in the UK a couple of years ago (for a year, in the South West) and trust me it is NOT cheap to live there as you imply.
Like many people here in Guernsey we though the cost of living would be a lot cheaper. Yes the weekly shop was cheaper at Morrisons but not by much. Plus you add on all the extras like Council Tax, much higher tax and insurance, water, electricity (no cheap rate there!), fuel etc etc and Guernsey by comparison is pretty favourable. Eating out and going to the pub is at least as expensive as here – sometimes a lot more.
Kevin is right – if you want to live in Huddersfield it probably is cheaoer than here but at what personal cost? Minimum wage (or no job), no going to the beach after work, poor housing da de da. Oh yea and you try to get cheap car insurance if you live in Huddersfield.
Also, kevin, most high streets in the UK are in a far worse state than ours.
As alluded to by other posters if people actually cared about what they pay for things and shopped around there wouldn’t be such a rip off culture.
A few tips for you:
- don’t go to your usual garage to fill up, go where fuel is cheaper.
- make a few calls when you need to fill your oil tank up.
- if you need a new telly look at prices on the interweb, go to a retailer and haggle. Almost always works. No money off is a no deal!
Having said all of the above there is a danger that with rising utility bills we might become more like the UK – which would be very bad indeed. But that’s not what this report is about.
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Kevin
The beautifully fresh baked tiger loaves in Tesco are to die for and cost 40 pence nationwide; posh areas and slum areas alike. I have eaten the Island Bakery loaves and the M&S bread and the Co-op bread on Guernsey [all costing much in excess of 40 pence per loaf] and the term inedible cardboard comes to mind.
As for calling places like Haworth a deprived area when it earns more in a day from tourism than Guernsey would in six months is nothing short of delusional. Just because the Guernsey bakeries don’t know how to compete with Villette on Main Street in Haworth does not mean that Haworth and Villette are slumdog millionaires. It simply means the Guerns can’t compete.
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Just a thought – perhaps a better comparison would be with other small island economies such as the Isle of Man and Jersey?
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Everything everyone says on this website is true; it is more expensive to live in Guernsey – but having been on both sides of the water I know where I would rather be. Guernsey has its problems but at least we have good schooling, the best possible healthcare, well paid jobs for those who want them, not too many Chavs littering the pavements in Town, good food in nice restaurants, fabulous beaches etc etc. It is better to be poorer here, than inner City Birmingham, London, or Manchester. Obviously you can eat cheaper in Tescos, Aldi etc etc. The point is a lot of us prefer to eat good food, not rubbish processed stuff. I would rather cut down on other things to buy a Senners loaf, than eat an Aldi 30p special.
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How much did this survey costs us find out that we live on an expensive rock which most people already knew.. ?.
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Paul Le Page
OK. Point taken. It was Kevin who insisted on comparison with the UK mainland. However the Isles of Scilly [off the Cornish coast] are a small island community subject to freight charges like the Channel Islands. They are not as cheap as Tesco but their Co-op stores aren’t bad. The bakery is on St Martins and it is an award winning bakery which has been featured on the BBC. The bread, traditional pies, cakes and pasties, tarts, flans, and home made lemonade are second to none. Not cheap but an experience well worth paying for, unlike the appalling stuff that calls itself bread produced by the Guernsey Island Bakery.
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Good sides and bad sides eh?
Not many places in the world where the commute time to your place of work is negligible, you get paid relatively well, you live in a secure(ish) community and can be down the beach 15 minutes after leaving work.
Comparing Guernsey to UKland is a bit silly; scale and all that. Although I accept that some buinesses do appear to swing the lead a bit when it comes to ‘freight costs’.
‘You’ve never had it so good’ ;-)
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We have nobody to blame but ourselves. We let this be done to us by a small number of people who are one or more of the following: well connected, wealthy, Politicians. e.g. ‘Creasey’s charges VAT!’ – Just bought a pair of M&S (Creasey’s) jeans. £15 on the label but when rung through the till, £12? Of course 20% VAT on £15 is £3. Nevermind, won’t charge you £12. Cancel that and ring through £15! When I questioned this a well rehearsed line was given, ‘Its not M&S but Creasey’s and Creasey’s can charge what it likes.’ So it can and buy an item over £25 and you’ll find a 20% reduction (VAT?).
Still considering whether to return the item and shop elsewhere or better still buy online. Why buy Guernsey when those selling just want to take you for all they can?
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Coyote – just to clarify I wasn’t meaning you, I was making a general comment.
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Jay – that’s the point I’ve tried to make in previous posts!
If we pay the prices we are agreeing are we not?
Recently saw a second hand camera in a local retailer – quite fancied it to add to my collection…went onto flea bay saw what they sell for on there…back to shop, offered the same…deal done. Saving £20 in the process.
Its no good sitting on our collective appathetic backsides moaning about “rip off Guernsey” – get out there and haggle and save some malumbas!
PS I buy most of my apparel on-line as the retailer you mention won’t discount (most won’t) – so no sale. Their loss not mine.
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This sort of comparison is only valid when comparing like with like. And this report does not do that. And much of the investigation appears to be subjective and based on opinion, so is suspect.
To be valid it needs to be based on a “basket”
of standard items and each costed in both places. Which raises the other point – where in the UK?
Very likely this was well intentioned, but it has very little real value, and is most likely a waste of money. Either do it properly, or not at all.
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Having actually read the report I now realise just how flawed it is.It actually states where comparisons are not being made on a like for like basis, and then gleefully ignores them in the final figures !!
For instance, if you look at travel costs on a like for like basis ( rural regions where a car is “essential” ) we are apparently 15% cheaper, but the higher difference ( between public transport users in the UK and car ownership in Guernsey ) is in the analysys.
People in Guernsey apparently need to pay extra for off island travel – wheras somehow people in England can travel everywhere and anywhere for free ?
Pensioners in Guernsey NEED the internet ( wheras in the UK they don’t) and can’t use the free bus service for some reason….
Everybody in Guernsey apparently uses electric heating, wheras everybody in England uses gas …
And only the final figures are given, so it is impossible to calculate the real like for like difference …. have they been taking spin lessons from Education ?
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coyote\john\kevin
where do you get off?
everything is dearer here full stop and there are reasons for that.
tesco (what a paragon of virtue they are) wish to open a superstore somewhere, anywhere in the u.k. it goes something like this.
we wish to open a store and we will take 300 people off the dole. those people will pay tax e.t.c how do you the local council feel about that?
Council (after some number crunching) actually we have some land you can have cheap and thank you very much. over here you try building a supermarket. it costs millions! coyote why don’t you set up a bakery and sell at exactly the same prices you are quoting after all you are an expert? Let’s hear it.
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Guernsey is a rip off and why ? the brilliant states of guernsey there the ones to blame
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I think the percentage has been wildly underestimated.
Eg. I can’t find anywhere in Guernsey that sells freshly baked sausage rolls for less than £1.
Greggs’ Sausage Roll = 58p.
25%? my aunt fanny!
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I reckon we should turn the cinema into a giant Lidl, the Forest Road garage into a drive-thru McDonalds and the Wicked Wolf into a Weatherspoons.
Or I could always leave the island, I suppose?
Would you all pay £1 towards my airfare?
Yes? Then pay £1 towards the North Show instead and keep it going!
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Guernseyasider – proper sausage rolls have no business being sold for 58p! What on earth do you think you are eating at that price?!!!
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guernseasider
try the in house sausage roll at the co-op two king size for £1.46 baked fresh daily thats only 73p each.
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#sarnia expat
Errrrm … going out on a limb here but maybe a ….. Sausage roll?
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Guernseasider – ho ho ho – quite the wit eh?
It’s all a question of quality and what you are used to isn’t it? If you are prepared to spend 58p on a sausage roll and you are happy with the taste – go for it.
You can buy cheap food most places – but I don’t want to eat rubbish. And don’t get me started on the old sob story that some people HAVE to eat the sort of rot that is being sold to unsuspecting punters. With a bit of forethought and a modicum of culinary knowledge you can feed a family cheaply but nutritiously – I know, because I do so.
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sarnia expat:
“… sausage rolls have no business being sold for 58p! What on earth do you think you are eating at that price?!!!”
Denise had the recipe on The Royle Family:
“Eye’oles, Ear’oles and B**’oles!!!!”
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Beanjar – got it in one!
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There’s nothing wrong with a Sausage Roll boys, but I now see why Sarnia Expat is so against sausage rolls….
He prefers noshing on a Beanjar.
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Yes but have you been to the UK mainland these days. Its like a third world country.
Nobody speaks English, its filthy, very expensive and a lot of over weight rude people.
My partner had to be taken to hospital, which was filthy,seven hours in the ER and then they give you a bill.
So please dont tell me that Guernsey is so bad.
The Island may have a few problems but its still the best place in the world to live.
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ANDREW
Wrong! The Isles of Scilly are the very best place in the whole world to live. Their beauty and magic and unique-ness are something Guernsey can only dream about.
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coyote
as you must be living in the Scilly Isles
what’s the weather like at this time of year?
do they have a tesco that bakes tiger loaves for 40p?
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coyote – but are not the residents of the Scilly Isles effectively tenants on a private estate?
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Kevin
temperatures in the Isles of Scilly in the high teens; some rain, some sunhine; the palm trees, bamboo, agapanthus and hottentot fig are flourishing. Magical starlit nights and when the moon is full….
there is no Tesco but they have a Co-op stores with fresh baked bread from around 80pence and then there is the bakery on St Martins.
there is a ferry that runs to time providing a daily service to the UK and for which not sailing is not an option.
there is a public sewage plant so one doesn’t have to swim in dirty waters and the fish are safe to eat.
the best cream teas in the whole world are served on the island of St Agnes.
in short the whole place is pretty much perfect and the natives are friendly and don’t hate the UK.
Quite idyllic really.
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coyote – but why would they hate the UK? they are part of the UK!
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The cost of trademen in Guernsey is crazy.
And we have loads of M&S and 2 Waitrose. Where is the likes of the value supermarkets like Asda ?
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