Bringing you the news, sport, travel and weather for the Channel Islands

Wrasse are fetching up to £17.50 per fish, but why?

The new Aurigny planes would have cameras that give a clearer view in foggy conditions.

Chris Quevatre
BBC News Online

A bid to lengthen Guernsey airport's runway by using the safety areas is "potentially dangerous", according to the CEO of Aurigny.

The States of Guernsey agreed last week that Deputy Jan Kuttelwascher should investigate the use of Runway End Safety Areas (RESAs) to enable bigger aircraft to land in the island.

The Committee for Economic Development has published a policy letter, external in which it says it wants to encourage more links with regional airports in the UK and Europe, as well as an international hub such as Heathrow.

There have been regular calls from some deputies in this political term to further extend the runway so that larger aircraft can land in Guernsey, giving more options for an open skies policy.

Using the RESAs to extend the runway means avoiding extending the boundary of the airport, but losing the safety area which gives a margin of protection for aircraft.

Mark Darby said Guernsey's runway is short, exposed to wind and challenging to land on - he has fears that a commercial aircraft that visits here infrequently may overshoot the runway under difficult conditions.

He said if the RESAs are used to extend the runway, the chances of an incident are "quite high".

Chris Quevatre
BBC News Online

Guernsey should be accessible from all over the world on either a direct flight or with one stop, according to the Committee for Economic Development.

In a policy letter about the island's travel links, external, the committee said Guernsey needs to be connected to an "international hub".

While many options - including Amsterdam, Paris and Frankfurt - are detailed, the committee has chosen Heathrow as the ideal airport to connect to.

It said the connectivity and reliability of any route would need to be prioritised over affordability, as the route would be used mainly by business travellers.

Rob England
BBC News Online

Milk prices could go up in Guernsey because thousands of milk crates have gone missing.

Richard Evans, Deputy Managing Director States of Guernsey Trading Assets, says over two years 4,000 of the crates have disappeared, each costing £14.

Mr Evans said the dairy was facing costs of around £28,000 to replace 2,000 of the the crates, to cope with the 4,179 gallons (19,000 litres) of milk it produces every day.

He added these costs could form part of the discussion with farmers over the price of milk.

Mr Evans said it was possible wholesalers who deliver the dairy's milk were not returning them.

However, he said he'd also seen the crates elsewhere - such as on trucks belonging to construction companies.

"I'd prefer to ask people to bring the crates back and offer a sort of 'amnesty'," he said.

"However, if we regularly find someone, or a company, with milk crates that aren’t being used to hold milk cartons, we would consider billing."

Ryan Morrison
BBC News Online

A 17-year-old boy has been charged with possessing an offensive weapon and robbery.

The teenager, who can’t be named for legal reasons, is accused of approaching two other 17-year-old boys in St Helier on 8 November and saying “empty your pockets now” whilst holding a knife.

The prosecution asked the Youth Court to keep jurisdiction and not refer it to the Royal Court but this was rejected as it was deemed “too serious” for the youth court to hear.

He has been remanded in custody until 18 December when his case will be sent to the Royal Court.

Chris Quevatre
BBC News Online

Guernsey Electricity is questioning how it will continue to make money because of the increasing number of people generating their own power.

The provider has released its annual accounts, which show that profits have dropped by £3m for the year ending 31 March 2018.

CEO Alan Bates said that a change from "traditional radial flow" - the idea of a power station sending power to all the buildings in the island - was "inevitable".

With more people installing solar panels at their own homes, Guernsey will see more "Peer to Peer" trading, he added.

Guernsey Electricity installed the largest solar array in the island earlier this year.

Ryan Morrison
BBC News Online

A 17-year-old boy has been charged with possessing an offensive weapon and robbery.

The teenager, who can’t be named for legal reasons, approached two other 17-year-old boys in St Helier on 8 November and told them to “empty their pockets” at knife point.

The Jersey Youth Court heard the accused was holding a 10-20cm kitchen knife and warned the boys he would “cut them” if they told the police.

He took an iPhone 8 and a £10 note from the victims at about 22:45 by Springfield in St Helier on 8 November.

The prosecution has asked the Youth Court to keep jurisdiction and not refer it to the royal court. The court has retired to consider the request.

Chris Quevatre
BBC News Online

The Committee for Economic Development has outlined its "investment objectives" for Guernsey's travel links.

In a policy letter, external, the committee said it wants to connect to an international hub such as Heathrow, develop links with more airports in the UK and Europe, and make Guernsey accessible from all over the world with a maximum of one connection.

These are their top seven priorities:

• Encourage development of regional connectivity in the UK and Europe through an open skies policy approach
• Security of connection to London Gatwick
• Connection to a major international hub such as Heathrow Airport
• Security of connectivity to Alderney through the operation of a Public Service Obligation
• Attract carriers with proven international connectivity
• Broaden UK and European connectivity
• Access for Bailiwick residents to specialist healthcare and emergency evacuation services

The policy letter will be debated in the States of Guernsey next month.

Hayden Atkins
Reporter, BBC Radio Guernsey

The St Peter Port Christmas Lights Charity has raised enough funds to cover this year's display.

The charity said after a busy few months - and panic in the final few weeks - the Guernsey community raised more than £30,000.

This year's switch-on event has moved from Church Square to Market Square on 29 November.

There will be more lights on Mill Street, Mansell Street, Upper Mansell Street & Contree Mansell, as well as replacement lights for the ones damaged in Smith Street by last December's storms.

There are new lights in Quay Street and a nativity scene outside the Town Church.

Le Petit Train will also be doing special tours to see the lights on the 1 December.

Hayley Westcott
BBC News Online

There's currently a yellow weather warning in place for wind across the islands, Jersey Met has said.

It added winds of force six can be expected.

Image source, Jersey Met

BBC Radio Jersey

Jersey's government should better manage its properties which aren't being used and are costing taxpayers' money, a politician has said.

Offices, homes and shops are included in 22 publicly owned buildings left empty for more than a year.

The States of Jersey says the properties are awaiting either redevelopment, change of use or will be rented out at a later date.

St Helier Deputy Carina Alves says she's concerned some homes are being left vacant when there's a lack of housing in the island, while others are left to decay.

Chris Quevatre
BBC News Online

Guernsey Electricity's profits dropped by nearly £3m in 2018.

The company's accounts for the year ending March 2018 have been published, external.

Profits for 2018 were £1.2m, down from £4.1m in the previous year.

While revenue from the sales of electricity increased by £2m, expenses increased by £5m.

CEO Alan Bates said profit levels were "unfortunately below the level required to continue to fund necessary investments in the islands electricity infrastructure.

"This will become an issue as we plan for future capital investments," he added.

"This financial year we have reinvested £8.4m of cash back into our business activities, whilst maintaining tariff levels unchanged for six years."

Rob England
BBC News Online

Two people were taken to hospital after a crash in Guernsey.

It happened on the junction at Mont Cuet Road and L'Ancresse Road in the Vale at about midnight.

One vehicle was involved and the extent of the injuries are not known.

Simon Fairclough
Guernsey Political Reporter

Guernsey Police have posted some driving crime stats from the weekend.

No one was caught using a mobile phone while driving, but eight people were caught speeding - one person was clocked at 50mph.

Three people were stopped for not wearing a seat belt, while another was stopped for drink driving.

BBC Weather

Any lingering showers at first will die away fairly quickly to leave a mostly dry day with sunny spells.

Brisk south-westerly breezes will turn southerly later on.

Maximum Temperature: 11 to 14C (52 to 57F)

Jersey:

Guernsey: