Economic Development Minister: Senator Philip Ozouf

[boatyboy]

There seems to be some criticism of Treasury Minister Phillip Ozouf  being very unclear on the talkback chat show, you really cannot call it an interview. The strange thing being, he is normally one of more articulate ministers and when I have heard him live, a very good public speaker.

This is very worrying for local residents ( Jersey stakeholders ) when the Treasury Minister just bumbles words out. Its not as if he is not spending enough of our money on getting the best advice, judging by the new Strategic Panel,  several states departments, the Jersey finance shop which is on record as meeting the head bankers in Jersey each month for an update, and JFS will shortly be heading for America to meet with power brokers in President Obamas team.

I would submise Senator Phillip Ozouf, would have said more if maybe he had a clearer view of the economic situation. There again maybe he does, but would rather not share it.

So by saying next to nothing on the radio the soup has just got thicker.

I have asked the simple question before, which is, what is plan B if finance starts a downward spiral ? It must happen at some time, so whats the new structure going to look like ?

Maybe he should ask the most unpopular, the kid terrible, Stuart Syvret amongst the States members for some advice. Have a look at what a little commonsense can do. From PJ September 15th 2008. It's not rocket science.

I said in the States this week that the world’s economy was heading for a crash – maybe one which could engulf us even in a matter of weeks.

‘Weeks’ is now looking decidedly optimistic.”

As at 10.32 this Monday morning – no mug – err – I mean buyer – having been found for Lehmans – the stock-markets are thus:

FTSE down 3.32%

DAX down 3.32%

Cac down 4.2%

And at time of writing - the markets yet to open on Wall Street.

I told you so.

Mathematical reality has finally caught-up with the whole pixilated, electronic, debt-trading fantasy pyramid selling scheme.

That Second Law of Thermodynamics? It’s a bitch, ain't it?

Stuart.

http://planetjersey.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,1080.msg13618.html#msg13618

I put no States Member on a pedestal. It does seem Senator Syvret is one of our politicians who is not afaid to communicate what he sees as the truth. Clear plain talking seems to have evaded many our elected for years, prompting questions of self interest, big ego's, being secretive and an old boys club. Senator Syvrets words, dept-trading fantasy, pyramid selling, mathematical reality, easy words ( even for me ) to understand in todays climate.

Is the day coming when  " they " will be left with no choice ? retire the spin doctors, and then resign themselves as in Iceland.

Boatyboy

[boatyboy]

Good post Moot and full of the truth. click on link, but I thought the reply should be on this thread.

http://planetjersey.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1936.msg30123#msg30123

The world is changing, if Jersey does not, we are finished.

Apart from the public sector final salary scheme paid for by the way, by private businesses that cannot afford them, there is the problem of the annual pay cheque.

A very small ( yes I love Jersey but it is small ) island paying £291,000,000 million in wages, jaw drops, sorry didn't you know, will sink under this eye watering amount taken from the annual budget.

I have spoken to politicians that as you have pointed out are to scared to deal with the issue. They are just so powerful I hear.

So what's it to be, self distruct, or an emerging strong Government. I also noticed Phillip Ozouf and Alan Macan's gentle uttering some sense.

Lets face it, if any one in Government knows this pair do having deep financial information supplied at will.

Will Senator Phillip Ozouf become Jersey's financial saviour ? Fulfilling his potential, and go down as the ruthless economics minister and then chief minister that saved Jersey, admired and earning a place in Jersey history as the accountant who saw the writing on the wall.

Then took ( regrettable but necessary action ) to off load an expensive bloated administration to save the island and people he loved and cut the wage / pension bill to match future Government lower income ( the old days are over).

The other option of course is to become, well a nothing.

Boatyboy.

http://planetjersey.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1936.msg30123#msg30123

[Dylan]

Like it BB, you have to break an egg to make an omlette. Let's hope that this is going to happen in Jersey.

[ole razzy]

Will Senator Phillip Ozouf become Jersey's financial saviour ? Fulfilling his potential, and go down as the ruthless economics minister and then chief minister that saved Jersey, admired and earning a place in Jersey history as the accountant who saw the writing on the wall.

Then took ( regrettable but necessary action ) to off load an expensive bloated administration to save the island and people he loved and cut the wage / pension bill to match future Government lower income ( the old days are over).

The other option of course is to become, well a nothing.

Ozouf has quite a skill. He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I've met.

[boatyboy]

PUBLIC sector jobs will be lost as part of unprecedented plans to plug the States’ huge budget deficit, Treasury Minister Philip Ozouf confirmed yesterday.
Speaking to business leaders at a Chamber of Commerce lunch, the Senator said that he was considering introducing a temporary voluntary redundancy scheme and imposing recruitment freezes

http://www.thisisjersey.com/2010/03/18/public-sector-jobs-will-go/

Senator Phillip Ozouf has a seriously difficult job, who would envy him. He has got the best advice that money can buy from the economic panel and others. He is right to try and get more money into Jersey by selling Jerseys finance industry to other parts of the world, what other major income stream does this small island possess.

It's not good that the UK is 178 trillion in dept. interest each week is costing the UK around £400 million. A new court ruling states that if you move to a place like Jersey but still make your income from the UK, you will be taxed  as being a UK  resident. Ouch and dam, for Jerseys plan to get more UK multimillionaires to live here. What will be the next blocking or grabbing move by the desperate UK authorities ?

Here is the bad news if Jersey does slip into serious dept,  what options are open to us to get out of the red.

Being so small so, dependant on one industry Senator Phillip Ozouf knows the writing is on the wall. The world has changed at an alarming rate.


Jersey can no longer carry a liability of £400 million in wages, social security, and pension payments for an island 12 miles by 4 miles to pay the public sector.

Lets put it another way. Divide that figure by the population of say 90,000 and one way ( for way read tax ) or another each man woman and child will have to contribute £4,444 pounds each. 

Senator Ozouf  will need support from all states members ( and the public in the view of forthcoming strikes ), otherwise we will just be delaying the inevitable  island bankruptcy.

Boatyboy.

[Malachi]

I think the UK is on course to borrow £178 billion this year (PSBR), which will be added to whatever their national debt is. What is alarming about the current situation (if you live in the UK) is the 12.6% of GDP figure, which is a huge increase on previous years.

If the UK had debts of £178 trillion, which is four times the annual GDP of the entire planet (in USD/$), Alistair Darling & co. would be jumping in front of trains... no need to exaggerate, BB.

That said, why are our beloved politicos so terrified of deficits? As a proportion of GDP, the numbers being talked about are tiny (Jersey's GDP is £4 billion or something).

Disclaimer. I'm not defending the status quo or implying that the SoJ could spend double what it does at the moment without worrying about it or causing any problems etc. I'm just wondering if there is a law that forbids the SoJ from doing what govts. all over the world do, which is borrow money.

[rogueelement]

We have suggested previously that Jersey Limited could issue a bond worth say,,, a billion. The only problem is that the muppets would then spend that money!
No , truth to tell we needed this recession to restore some balance and provide a reality check to the powers that be.

Whilst on this subject , I am sure that Phillo (as we refer to him in footballing circles) would have had no powers over the autonomous JFSC which have just ensured that 30 jobs leave Jersey for Guernsey since they are unhappy with the new owners of Kleinwort Benson.
Now, put yourself in the shoes of those new owners , on the one hand you have Guernsey saying "welcome and thank you very much for the business and new jobs" on the other hand the Jersey Authority saying "sorry pal , sling your hook , we only deal with the creme de la creme , and those unemployed by our actions we are sure will be able to eat cake) A la Marie Antoinette.
Soooo, you move what needs to be moved immediately , you sit down , rationalise your actions , and come to the conclusion"Hey! do we really need to be in both Jersey and Guernsey?" 
If I worked for that ex bank I would be getting my CV prepared.
Nice one Phillo ! I,m sure that will be worth a jaunt to the IMF next meeting in Tierra del Fuego or wherever.

[boatyboy]

Malachi thanks for spotting my error. It is of course billions not trillions and Spartacus has a good point, thirty banking professionals is a lot of spending power to loose as Guernsey gets the business.

On Sundays talk back Senator Le Suer said that States savings had been made of thirty million pounds. He has told us this before. Others do not agree, others being no less than the Public accounts committee and the acknowledged businessman Kevin Keen (  seconded to help the failing Jersey Heritage ) Read what they have to say plus the figures. Other comments are included as to the running of Jerseys economy.

Starting with the States PaC.

Some time back we were told that Treasury Minister Terry Le Suer through economies had managed to save
http://planetjersey.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=109.msg14771#msg14771


• That expenditure has far exceeded the level projected in the Council of Minister’s own Strategic Plan for 2006-11. In 2008 it was £30 million higher and in 2010 the overspend will be £65 million!
• In spite of a pay freeze, a lot of ‘shroud waving’ and a projected drop in States income of £94 million. Net revenue expenditure will actually grow by £26 million or 4.6% next year.
http://www.thisisjersey.com/2009/08/27/cutting-costs-is-a-must/

All told, ministers are urging the House to sanction expenditure of £754 million. In spite of departments facing a call for spending cuts of marginally less than one per cent, a significant increase in spending is being proposed.
http://planetjersey.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1372.msg37684#msg37684

The States treasurer Ian Black is in for a hard hot sweaty afternoon
http://planetjersey.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=109.msg12649#msg12649

Some good news on States savings.

ONLY two States departments have returned their unspent balances to general revenue.

Treasury and Resources asked all departments and committees to consider handing funds back that were leftover after 2009 expenditure had been taken into account.
http://www.thisisguernsey.com/2009/11/25/just-two-departments-return-excess-cash/

boatyboy.

[boatyboy]

As was expected, the Banks are going to have to  pay a levy  to contribute to the massive deficit the UK now has.Knowing this is in the wind , will they really want to expand or spend on new offices in Jersey. The EU is very interested in the way banks and insurance companies work and will take more power from 2011.

Philip Ozouf stated in the assembly yesterday that he was very confident that Jerseys financial sector will grow. We all hope he is right, but that sort of assumes he knows what the three new EU bodies binding rules for financial institutions will be, which of course will change the way financial businesses  operate.

Maybe Philip Ozouf does ? which would be incredibly visionary.  Jersey being so small and not really that important to Brussels should be careful with spending at this time. It will be interesting to see what the big players have come up with regarding this  new game plan for Europe, which of course will affect us.


Quote-

* Hector Sants, the FSA's chief executive steps down this summer and it may take time for a successor to find his or her feet. He has also warned that no matter what type of supervisory structure emerges, it will increasingly have little choice but to apply rules made elsewhere.

* Bank of England Governor Mervyn King was keen on Wednesday to stress that changes must be carefully thought through, saying the key issue is what regulation does and not who does it.

* The bulk of financial rules applied in Britain are made at EU level and what national wiggle room the FSA had will decrease after 2011 when three new pan-EU authorities to monitor banks, insurers and markets are set up.
Their core aim is to forge common rules that are binding on all member state supervisors, having a direct impact on individual banks, insurers and markets in Britain.

* The regulatory agenda to deal with the crisis has been set globally by the G20 group of leading countries and the new global Financial Stability Board is responsible for ensuring no country seeks to create an unfair advantage for its financial sector.

* The changeover will need to be handled carefully as too much is going on internationally for Britain to be distracted with internal reform.

* The FSA is seen as an effective player in shaping the nitty gritty of financial rulemaking in the EU, and banks worry this will be blunted while the new set-up is put in place.

The EU is in the middle of approving rules that will have a major impact on Britain, the bloc's biggest financial centre, such as on hedge funds, supervision, derivatives and crisis management.

BREAKING UP BANKS

* Banks will breathe a sigh of relief there are no immediate plans to break them up as the issue has been handed to an independent commission for study.

* The new government plans to push ahead with a levy on banks even though the fact there is no global consensus could leave banks in Britain at a competitive disadvantage if the levy is heavy.

http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/instant-analysis-bank-changes-will-be-outweighed-by-eu-reuters_molt-e80948b0a185.html

BB

[rogueelement]

It would be extremely interesting if OOUUZZZo could provide some sort of explanation as to which areas Jersey Finance might grow ,unless of course he means the quango , our surrogate tourism committee, who by virtue of their own travel arrangements along with Senior Politicians have tended to put the likes of former representatives like Jean Le Maistre in the shade .......for the life of me i cannot recall a single presidency he occupied but by "Chrie's" did he take the piss or what?
Fact
1 The OECD detest Jersey , guernsey and the IOM
2 we have known this fact for 40 years
3 Promoting the Island currently , must be like begging at a funeral.
4 Tel, do yourself a favour ....resign.
5 new person in charge,,,,, advise whomsoever to stop telling you what you cannot do,,,,,,,start advising what you can do , and if they are not willing to be forth coming ,advise them that you will revert to position 1-interest.
If this was an attempt at comedy , I suspect that the Jersey paid Opera house would run it for months ..........
Brand New Idea!!! Move the states into the opera house therefore cutting expenses to a huge degree whilst maintaining pantomime season forever!!
I think syvret with a bit of rouge on the cheeks would make a great "Widow Twanky"
Oh no he would,ent!

[boatyboy]

It's becoming a very interesting time in politics.

Reported by CTV this very evening Senator Philip Ozouf made a chief minister type statement, is there a falling out at the top of Jersey politics?

Senator Ozouf told channel TV, that next week the pay received by Jerseys top civil servants will be made public.

Guernsey is heading the same way. Progress towards transparent government no doubt, and well done Senator Ozouf, credit where it is due.

You would have thought that CM Le Suer would make the statement, could there be a mutiny a the top table. Freedom of information is to expensive says CM  Le Suer and his supporters, one less without Terry Le Main ?

We need freedom of information says Senator Ozouf and the modernisers, because this Government's ratings as shown at the hustings and other indicators are so dismal, a street cleaning team, are higher rated.

Lets see if Senator Ozouf's statement comes true, or will the chief executives not want their bonuses and heavy wage packets viewed by the taxpayers who fund them.

BB

[boatyboy]

Lets consider States Executives sorry…………….. I meant the Council of Ministers ideas on saving money to fill the black hole that was caused by going with the 0/10 system on tax. Many political observers and  businessmen said 0/10 was fatally flawed and left Jersey with a £100 million black hole.

Money saving ideas, Cut transport for senior citizens, cut milk for kids, close a community centre close a important aid to recovery at the hospital the hydrotherapy pool. Ask nicely for 67 states employees to leave but give them £6 million after all Mike Pollard was looked after with a big golden handshake, we don't want discrimination do we.

The good news, pay the states members an extra thousand pounds and the public sector 2% more for other senior grades.

Plan B raise more money. Tax everyone a lot more, It's official because Senator Ozouf told a meeting this morning.

This is a reversal of his stance a few months ago. Why invent the wheel when mistershifter says what I am thinking.

JEP blog.

mistershifter

Senator put your own house in order before shifting the burden of YOUR overspends, schoolboy errors and general balls-ups onto the long suffering tax payer. The first round of ’suggestions’ were little more than a laughing stock and I guess that when you do hike up GST to 20% the excuse will be given that all options were explored. Pathetic.

Article tonight JEP

ISLANDERS face a £50m tax hit in the coming years, Treasury Minister Philip Ozouf told a group of businessmen this morning.

 http://www.thisisjersey.com/2010/06/16/treasury-minister-warns-50m-of-tax-rises-needed/#ixzz0r2Pa0cG1

BB

[rogueelement]

Interesting to note your thrust to the right wing of politics BB , are you sure you are a fully paid up Syvrashite or not?
I wish people would be less confusing and just state an opinion without the confusion of obfuscation or scant regard for facts.
On the other hand , if the foregoing offends you in anyway , you must be a very sad person , so I do of course apologise as I have to Tiny the Proof, I think it is only fair that you two should be considered as a couple in Cyber political terms as you have spent so much time together on other sites.
My apologies , I am but a worm.

[boatyboy]

Senator Ozouf has had plenty of time to re-adjust and tune Jerseys economy with a big budget for outside consultants however  unlike the UK the big spend and tax continues, a complete disgrace and bad polices.

Down to Ozouf he is the man with reponsibility as treasury minister, no wonder he is worried and twitters.

BB

[boatyboy]

Phillip Ozouf Treasury Minister -  personal ( edited ) website - blog tells us.

Over the last week or so, the States of Jersey have launched a new way for Jersey to get more involved in the savings initiatives currently underway within the States.

Tomorrow Value Jersey will be officially announced, as a label and online forum that has been created to ensure that the public is kept informed of progress with the savings being made, and also to encourage everyone in the community to take part in creating better value for Jersey on an ongoing basis. It is an easy way to learn more about savings plans, which are continually evolving, and to give us your suggestions for improvements, as well as discuss changes as they are being made.

http://www.ozouf.je/2011/07/value-jersey/#comment-543

The submission he refused to publish on his blogg.


I recently read, that the so called golden plated pensions in the UK are to cost higher grade civil servants more by up to £3,000 pounds per year. There are also around half a million jobs aimed at the more managerial type jobs to go, not only but including NHS primary care managerial posts as doctors will be controlling most of the budget.

Then the costs at Whitehall itself  and I offer this from the BBC

The government says it saved £3.75bn in 10 months by cutting jobs and projects, and spending less.
Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude described the savings, confirmed by an independent audit, as "staggering".
Rent, advertising, consultants and 17,000 civil service posts were cut between May 2010 and March 2011 as part of measures to cut the UK deficit.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-14359927

As you are no doubt aware, any person in the UK earning £38,000 pays 20% in tax, earnings after £38,000 attracts tax of  40% and anyone like Mr Izatt and several senior managers in the states and finance, earning more than £150,000 would attract in the UK, tax at 50% after that amount.

Rather than increasing GST which takes more of the low and middle earners ever shrinking  disposable income, would it not be fairer to,  as an example,  tax people earning more than £50,000 a mere 30% and those on over £100,000 40% as the states spending keeps on increasing not decreasing.

At least they would not have to decide whether to eat or heat their homes during the winter, unless they are living far beyond their high earning means.

Boatyboy.