Following five days of debate on changes to the draft plan drawn up by the Council of Ministers, States Members voted in favour of the amended plan by 32 to 16.
However, the split among backbenchers and the Council of Ministers was evident in the closing speeches of the debate, when several Deputies criticised the plan as ‘fluffy’, ‘woolly’, ‘wishy-washy’ and ‘flawed’ – echoing the anger evident during the lively discussions on the Island’s population over the last two weeks.
Many warned that population and taxes, including GST, would both rise following the approval of Jersey’s Strategic Plan. Several Members failed with amendments to change the Island’s immigration policy. They were concerned that the plan outlined a target to keep the total population below 100,000 and argued that the figure was too high.
• See Thursday’s JEP for a full report on the Strategic Plan debate and results of the key votes.
