And, like it or not, the end of the agreement in March this year also signalled a new and perhaps less intimate stage in the centuries-long relationship between Britain and its Crown Dependencies. The UK government might still recognise the ancient links between the Crown and the Dependencies, but it is clearly in no mood to feather-bed our communities if it is going to cost hard cash.
Unfortunately, the abrogation of the health agreement – overseen by Health Minister Dawn Primarolo, who has a track record of antipathy towards the Channel Islands from the perspective of taxation – is bound to have severe adverse consequences for the Island and Islanders.
It is all very well to say that private health insurance will plug the gap in care for Jersey people visiting the UK and for UK visitors to Jersey, but this argument breaks down as the personal difficulties and extra expense involved in individual cases become apparent. It is also clear that this new potential cost for holidaymakers coming to the Island can only be to the detriment of our tourist industry.
But new information – and allegations – about the termination of the health agreement have emerged. To begin with, the actions of the UK government appear to have been on the agenda for longer than had been acknowledged.
In addition, correspondence made public through a freedom of information application in the UK shows that Ms Primarolo was not prepared to give an inch on the issue, which she regarded as a totally unsustainable deal for British taxpayers. On several occasions she brushed aside requests for high-level meetings with this Island’s Health authorities, making it clear that there was no room for negotiation.
It has also emerged that Guernsey has been identified as the rocker of the boat whose demands focused new and critical attention on the health agreement. It has been alleged that Guernsey’s request for a larger payment led to questions being asked and sums being done.
Irrespective of precisely what led to the breakdown of an arrangement that had lasted for 30 years, we now know that we must not take for granted all aspects of our relationship with the UK, even if they are deeply entrenched in custom and practice.
Perhaps that is why our authorities appear to have so resignedly accepted a situation which has created real difficulty for so many people and which, given the wider ties of British citizenship which unite the Channel Islands and the UK, must surely be capable of a better resolution.
