Channel Islands Live: 9 October

1. Legionella bacteria found at Fort Regent
2. Guernsey civil service to cut 200 jobs
3. Jersey 2019 budget headlines released
4. Guernsey 2019 budget: Duty changes
5. Aurigny losses rise to £12.3m in 2018
6. Three million pounds could be set aside to react to Brexit
7. Updates on Tuesday 9 October 2018

Islanders asked about becoming civil partners

BBC Radio Jersey

People living in Jersey will be asked their opinions on allowing all couples in the island to become civil partners.

The chief minister is to launch a public consultation, after Theresa May announced the law in England and Wales is to change.

Senator John Le Fondre thinks it's unfair civil partnerships are only available to same-sex couples in Jersey.

But he says the island needs to make an informed decision.

Deputy Louise Doublet has argued a consultation is not needed. She thinks the States should just approve a change to the local law.

In the UK, heterosexual couple Rebecca Steinfeld and Charles Keidan say they are looking forward to setting a date for their civil partnership.

Couple's joy at civil partnership decision

Road plans ahead of liberation anniversary

BBC Radio Jersey

Jersey's Liberation Square and the Weighbridge could be joined together, and the road between them pedestrianised, if plans in next year's budget are approved.

The Treasury Minister, Deputy Susie Pinel says the £2m project is aimed at creating a bigger open space in which to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the island's liberation, in 2020.

Google

Among the budget's 170 pages is also a plan to break down barriers to home ownership by increasing the threshold at which first time buyers start paying stamp duty. To compensate, the amount islanders will pay on properties worth more than £500,000 will increase.

Here are the headlines from the budget.

Personal allowance rises as it ends for more high earners

BBC Radio Guernsey

We have increased personal income tax allowances above inflation for the third year in a row – over this period, cutting annual income tax bills by £600 per couple/£300 per individual."

Deputy Gavin St PierPresident, Committee for Policy and Resources

The proposed Guernsey budget for 2019 including 4.8% increased in supplementary allowances and in personal tax allowance - which rises to £11,000.

Also recommended is a reduction in the pay cap threshold suggesting anyone who earns more than £100,000 a year will see their allowances reduced by £1 for every £5 over £100,000 they earn.

The budget report says this will affect an additional 1,050 tax payers, increasing the number of individuals who are subject to the withdrawal of personal allowances to 2,200 (approximately 5.5% of taxpayers).

Legionella bacteria found at Fort Regent

BBC Radio Jersey

Officials have closed parts of Fort Regent leisure centre after legionella bacteria was found in the showers.

Breathing in water contaminated with the bacteria can cause some people to develop Legionnaires' disease - a rare but serious lung infection.

The Infrastructure Minister, Deputy Kevin Lewis, says the States is working to fix the problem...

Legionnaires' disease is uncommon but can be very serious

Guernsey Referendum: How to vote

Chris Quevatre

BBC News Online

Guernsey's first referendum takes place on Wednesday - it's a chance for the public to choose a system they want to use to elect their politicians.

There are five options:

• Option A: Thirty-eight politicians elected island-wide, every four years.
• Option B: Thirty-eight politicians elected across seven districts, every four years.
• Option C: Ten politicians elected island-wide and 28 elected across seven districts, every four years.
• Option D: Thirty-eight politicians elected across four districts, every four years.
• Option E: One-third of the 38 politicians elected island-wide, every two years.

The video is very good, but if you can't watch it, here's the gist.

• Everyone on the Electoral Roll will have up to five votes.
• You need to rank the options in order of preference.
• Rather than voting with the more traditional "X", you need to rank your preference with numbers, starting with the number 1.
• You would mark number 1 next to your favourite option, then 2 next to your next favourite option and so on.
• You don’t have to use all your votes.
• You should only vote for the options you would like to see introduced.
• If you do not like an option, don’t vote for it.
• If you really only like one option then you can just use one vote.

Record £160m paid for UK’s most expensive home ever sold

The Guardian

London penthouse apartment at One Hyde Park was purchased by Guernsey holding company.

Your views on Aurigny's losses

Twitter

Aurigny has predicted losses of £3.7m in 2018.

That means their total accumulated losses since 2015 will be £12.3m.

The airline has also forecasted a £4.4m loss in 2019.

Here's what you've been saying on Twitter...

Civil service 'must change' as job cuts announced

Ben Chapple

BBC News Online

Guernsey's government has announced plans to cut at least 200 civil service jobs by the end of 2020.

States chief executive Paul Whitfield said: "It is crucial, and I cannot stress this enough, to understand that the sustainable reduction of civil service posts will not be achieved by simply doing what we do today but with fewer people."

BBC

Deputy Gavin St Pier said: "I am pleased we are picking up the pace and ambition of public sector reform."

Deputy Gavin St Pier, the island's senior politician, said the structure of government had changed several times in the past two decades without any changes in the structure of the civil service and to "function effectively" it needed to "reorientate" as well.

"It is clearly about delivering efficiency at a lesser cost to the public, but it's also about being effective and that's an important part of this change," he added.

Church applies for permission for bell-ringing simulator

BBC Radio Guernsey

The Town Church in St Peter Port could soon have a brand new bell-ringing simulator if planning permission is granted.

If approved, the new simulator would sit in a vacant room near the top of the bell tower and would be used to train bell ringers without creating any noise from the bells.

Tower Captain of Town Church, Duncan Loweth, explains how it works...

The simulator would be used to train bell ringers without creating any noise

'Our goal is not to simply cut staff... it is to redesign'

Guernsey Press

A new civil service leadership team, which means the end of individual committees having a chief secretary, is being proposed by States chief executive Paul Whitfield.

Guernsey 2019 budget: Duty changes

BBC Radio Guernsey

While the 2019 budget will be voted on next month, some changes in excise duty have already come into effect:

• Cigarettes 7.4%, cigars 7.9% and all other tobacco 9.9%
• Alcohol 5%
• Fuel increases by 3.1p per litre to 70.1p

Getty Images

The remainder, if approved by Guernsey States, will start from 1 January 2019.

• Domestic and land tariffs increased by 10%
• About 30% of domestic properties would pay a higher rate ranging from a 15% increase for properties rated as 200-299 TRP to 60% for dwellings rated above 500
• Commercial TRP tariffs to rise 5% and new TRP categories suggested for accountancy and non-regulated financial services businesses
• Document duty reduced to 0%, but rates for duty on conveyances rise by 0.25% and 0.5% for properties valued above £400,000

Warning over police training at Jerbourg

I hope you like pumpkin soup...

Chris Quevatre

BBC News Online

Only the most experienced pumpkin carver would tackle this giant.

The pumpkin on the left weighs a massive 70 stone - that's almost 450kg.

It was grown by Jersey farmer Richard Le Sueur, who said he could see it growing day-by-day.

BBC

For context, that's about the size of a grand piano.

Mediterranean fish 'becoming more common' in Jersey waters

Jersey Evening Post

Bluefin tuna are not the only Mediterranean fish migrating to Jersey waters. Bonito first appeared here about 15 years ago and are being caught in ever-increasing numbers, according to the Jersey Evening Post.

Police training at Portlet

Chris Quevatre

BBC News Online

Guernsey Police has warned the public they are training at Portlet.

If you see a few officers sprinting past your garden gate, don't be alarmed.

Eighth of civil service posts to be cut

Jersey 2019 budget headlines

BBC Radio Jersey

This is an affordable, balanced and common sense budget, which is right for our current circumstances. In abiding by the three core principles, my first budget contains no surprises, with no major tax measures, and does not disturb my predecessors’ long-term fiscal framework of achieving a balanced budget."

Deputy Susie PinelTreasury and Resources Minister

The proposal to be voted on by the States for Jersey's government includes:

• Increase in alcohol duty by 3.5% - equivalent to just over 1p on the price of a pint
• 2p increase in fuel duty
• 59p increase in the duty on a pack of cigarettes
• No change to the £240 de minimis threshold for GST on goods imported by post
• £500 increase in the personal tax-free income allowance, taking it to £15,400 for a single person
• £150 increase in the second earners’ allowance, which will take it to £6,000
• Reduction in Stamp Duty for first-time buyers, by increasing the threshold for first-time buyers’ relief on properties from £450,000 to £500,000
• Abolition of Stamp Duty on mortgages for homes costing up to £600,000 and a tapered charge for homes valued between £600,000 and £700,000
• 0.5% increase in standard Stamp Duty rates for homes valued over £500,000 to fund these measures

Aurigny's accumulative losses rise to £12.3m

Ben Chapple

BBC News Online

The Guernsey States-owned airline has losses of £3.7m for this year, which is on top of its accumulated losses of £8.6m.

The 2019 Guernsey States budget recommends a £15m overdraft be approved for next year, which will need to be approved by the island's government.

This is as the airline estimates it will record losses of £4.4m in 2019.

BBC

The budget report says the losses "arise from the ongoing requirement for the airline to continue operating its Alderney services" and the introduction of a public service obligation on the route will "no longer have to be sustained by Aurigny's profit and loss account".

It also points out that as the company is "not likely" to reduce the accumulated losses (likely to be about £15m at the end of 2019) then the airline may need to be recapitalised again.

• States agrees to pay off airline's debts

Three million pounds could be set aside to react to Brexit

Ben Chapple

BBC News Online

Getty Images

Guernsey could put aside £3m of its reserves to be used for "urgent and necessary measures" to manage Brexit.

The Policy and Resources Committee says the money is needed to ensure any risks can be dealt with as they arise without impacting on the funding of other States work.

The use of funding could include:

• Changes to custom and immigration system
• Membership of the World Trade Organization
• Participating in new economic partnerships made by the UK
• Manage issues around supply chains
• Support measures to minimise transport disruption
• Maintain critical infrastructure

The committee - in the island's 2019 budget report - said the £3m was not an estimate of the funding needed, but due to the "immense uncertainty associated with Brexit, it is simply a reasonable and prudent recommendation".

The budget is due to be voted on next month.

Civil service job cuts ‘will save £10m a year’

Guernsey Press

Ambitious plans to shed 200 civil service posts and save at least £10m. a year have been unveiled by the States chief executive.