States Assembly ANNUAL REPORT 2016
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States Assembly ANNUAL REPORT 2016 PRESENTED TO THE STATES BY THE PRIVILEGES AND PROCEDURES COMMITTEE R.3/2018 Page 2 of 103 CONTENTS Page Foreword by the Bailiff of Jersey, President of the States ..................................................... 5 Introduction by the Chairman of the Privileges and Procedures Committee ...................... 7 1. THE STATES ASSEMBLY .......................................................................................... 9 1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 9 1.2 The make-up of the Assembly ......................................................................................... 9 1.2.1 Average length of service as an elected Member ................................................ 9 1.2.2 Average age of elected Members ........................................................................ 10 1.2.3 Number of male and female Members ................................................................ 10 1.3 Tributes to former Members ............................................................................................ 11 1.3.1 Tribute to the late Mr. Michael John Touzel ....................................................... 11 1.3.2 Tribute to the late General Sir Peter Whiteley, G.C.B., O.B.E., D.L. ................. 12 1.3.3 Tribute to the late Mr. Donald George Filleul, O.B.E......................................... 13 1.3.4 Tribute to the late Mr. Francis Hamon, O.B.E. ................................................... 14 1.3.5 Tribute to the late Mrs. Jacqueline Jeannette Huet ............................................. 15 1.3.6 Tribute to the late Mr. Richard Winter Le Sauteur ............................................. 16 2. MEETINGS OF THE STATES .................................................................................... 17 2.1 Length of meetings ........................................................................................................... 17 2.2 Allocation of time ............................................................................................................ 17 2.3 Oral Questions with notice ............................................................................................... 18 2.4 Oral Questions without notice .......................................................................................... 18 2.5 Written Questions ............................................................................................................ 19 2.6 Statements ........................................................................................................................ 19 2.7 Public Business ................................................................................................................ 20 2.8 Significant debates during 2016 ....................................................................................... 23 3. PRIVILEGES AND PROCEDURES COMMITTEE ................................................ 33 3.1 Membership ..................................................................................................................... 33 3.2 Meetings ........................................................................................................................... 33 3.3 Significant items dealt with by the Committee ................................................................ 33 4. SCRUTINY PANELS AND PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE ........................ 36 4.1 Chairmen’s Committee President’s Foreword ................................................................. 36 4.2 Annual Reports of the Scrutiny Panels and the PAC ....................................................... 38 4.2.1 Chairmen’s Committee ....................................................................................... 38 4.2.2 Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel ...................................................................... 39 4.2.3 Economic Affairs Scrutiny Panel ........................................................................ 42 4.2.4 Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel ...................................................... 46 4.2.5 Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel ................................... 50 4.2.6 Health and Social Security Scrutiny Panel .......................................................... 52 4.2.7 Public Accounts Committee ................................................................................ 56 Page 3 of 103 4.3 Membership of Scrutiny Panels and the PAC in 2016 ..................................................... 60 4.4 Full list of Scrutiny Panel and Public Accounts Committee Reports and additional output during 2016 ........................................................................................................... 62 4.5 Scrutiny Expenditure as at 31st December 2016 ............................................................. 65 5. INTER-PARLIAMENTARY BODIES ........................................................................ 66 5.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 66 5.2 Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (“CPA”) ...................................................... 66 5.2.1 Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians Regional Conference, Guernsey ...... 68 5.2.2 Commonwealth Day Observance ........................................................................ 69 5.2.3 46th Conference of the British Islands and Mediterranean Regional – Jersey .... 70 5.2.4 13th CPA Canadian Parliamentary Seminar, Ottawa .......................................... 74 5.2.5 27th Seminar, Brisbane, Queensland .................................................................. 75 5.2.6 8th Commonwealth Youth Parliament ................................................................ 77 5.3 Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie (“APF”) ................................................... 77 5.3.1 Conférence des Présidents, Cap Breton .............................................................. 77 5.3.2 Réseau des Femmes ............................................................................................ 77 5.3.3 29ème Assemblée Régionale Europe, Vallée d’Aoste, Italy ............................... 77 5.4 British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly (“BIPA”) .............................................................. 78 5.5 UK, Irish and Islands Clerks’ Seminar ............................................................................ 78 6. THE STATES GREFFE ................................................................................................ 80 6.1 Clerks’ section .................................................................................................................. 80 6.1.1 The clerking role ................................................................................................. 81 6.1.2 Ministerial Decisions .......................................................................................... 82 6.1.3 Access to information ......................................................................................... 82 6.1.4 Official Report (‘Hansard’) ................................................................................. 83 6.2 Publications Editor ........................................................................................................... 84 6.3 Reprographics .................................................................................................................. 87 6.4 States Assembly Information Centre ............................................................................... 88 6.5 Registry ............................................................................................................................ 88 6.6 Webcasting ....................................................................................................................... 90 6.7 Youth Assembly ............................................................................................................... 91 6.8 Primary School visits to the States Chamber/Citizenship Programme ............................ 93 6.9 Public engagement ........................................................................................................... 95 6.10 Changes to the elected membership of the States ............................................................ 97 6.11 Changes to the non-elected membership of the States ..................................................... 97 6.12 Staff matters and Charity fundraising .............................................................................. 98 APPENDIX Membership of the States Assembly on 1st January 2016 ......................... 101 Page 4 of 103 Foreword by the Bailiff of Jersey, President of the States I am pleased to write this Foreword to the Annual Report of the States Assembly for 2016. The middle year of an Assembly is often one where there is a consolidation, and 2016 is no exception. New Members elected in 2014 and Members elected to new positions, whether as Ministers or to Scrutiny, have settled. The number of questions asked and the number of statements made has gone up, and slightly more time has been spent on Public Business. As always, this Report shows the breadth of the work undertaken in and about the States Assembly for the benefit of the Public, and it repays study. I would like to take this opportunity of thanking the Greffier