Ferry boss promises jobs for islanders

The DFDS ferry service is set to start in the spring

A ferry boss says his company is committed to hiring local staff to run its services out of Jersey.

Chris Parker, Jersey route director for DFDS, said he hoped to hold a recruitment fair in the island in the new year.

He said: "We want to have local staff to be able to both run the operational side of things but also the commercial side of things.

"They have the experience and knowledge of life on the island and that's going to be very important to us."

The company has committed to:

• Greater frequency of ferries to the UK and France in peak periods

• Faster ferries to the UK

• Three new ferries within the next six years

• Two dedicated high-speed ferries for the summer

DFDS has also announced plans to set up a Jersey-route headquarters and is in discussions to sign a lease for offices at the harbour.

As part of the agreement, DFDS will provide services to Poole, Portsmouth and St Malo, but hopes to offer services to Guernsey in the future.

"We will add in those inter-island routes," said Mr Parker.

"I've already received emails and calls from islanders asking about them so I'm very well aware they're not just nice to have, they're essential and we will make sure that we deliver it.

"We're very confident, we've got a lot of work to do, but we know what the plan is and yeah, we can't wait to get started."

DFDS said it is still working on its ferry sailing schedules for Jersey, but hoped to have more details on Monday.