Tuesday 29 January 2013
Joint working between Jersey and Guernsey's Treasuries has been strengthened following a meeting of Ministers earlier this month.
Joint working between Jersey and Guernsey's Treasuries has been strengthened following a meeting of Ministers earlier this month.
Treasury Minister, Senator Philip Ozouf, and Assistant Treasury Minister, Deputy Eddie Noel, met their counterparts Treasury Minister, Deputy Gavin St Pier, and Deputy Treasury Minister, Deputy Jan Kuttelwascher in Jersey on 14 January. Along with their respective teams, the Ministers reviewed progress in terms of existing joint initiatives and discussed further ways that the Treasuries could work together to save money and improve efficiency.
At the meeting there was agreement on a number of specific next steps, including:
- sharing thinking and resources on Guernsey's Financial Transformation Plan and Jersey's Comprehensive Spending Review;
- further commitment to pan-Island procurement in order to save money and create greater efficiency, building on the success of the Channel Island Procurement Portal, which is now operational and is being used to manage the tendering process for suppliers in both Islands.
It was also agreed to develop the following areas of joint working by the end of the year:
- agreeing areas and priorities for collaboration on infrastructure development;
- seeking to combine internal audit resources and information where appropriate;
- sharing thinking and resources on public sector pension reform.
Senator Ozouf commented: "I am determined to forge ever closer links with our colleagues in Guernsey to produce tangible results in terms of saving money and delivering better services. In his recent speech to Jersey's Chamber of Commerce, our Chief Minister clearly emphasised how important working more closely with Guernsey will be to our future success. This closer alignment between the two Treasuries is a positive example of how this strategy is working in practice. We already have a number of successful joint initiatives underway and many more planned for the future.
"From an infrastructure perspective, many potential areas of collaboration were discussed, from energy policy, sustainability and security to waste management, and there is a clear intent from both Islands that these areas will be developed jointly wherever possible."
Deputy St Pier added: "Last year, our Treasury Departments established an excellent working relationship and, as our most recent meeting demonstrates, this is set to continue. We have similar challenges and opportunities, and Philip and I remain more committed than ever to ensure that our teams are working together to share ideas and resources. I am certain that 2013 is going to result in a closer alignment between our departments than ever before.
