It certainly is a
complete conflict of interest....as we've seen with Freddie Coehn's actions of late. He seems to be on a mission to become the patron saint of developers, to the extent that most islanders probably don't even realise his job description includes to an equal extent, "Enviroment".
It can also be argued that in a number of recent decisions Cohen has ignored the Island Plan, which is officially defined as being "the principal document in land-use planning in Jersey and the first consideration when making decisions on development proposals.", and serves to protect and preserve the island's natural element from over-development.
http://www.gov.je/PlanningEnvironment/IslandPlanThere was letter in the JEP earlier this week which called Cohen "a weak Planning Minister", which I think was a fair appraisal. Another letter argued that he was a strong Planning Minister because of the new styles of architecture he'd brought to the island.
That second letter proves exactly the point I made earlier about people not realising that Cohen has just as much of a duty to preserve the island as to allow to be coated in concrete - a duty which he currently seems to be negelecting.
So yes, we really need the post of Enviroment Minister to be seperated from Planning. I'm sure that would annoy many of those working in Planning, causing them extra headaches and hassles, but ultimately it would be beneficial for
the island, which is what
should count for more.
But, when all is said and done, if Cohen were properly following his mandate, we wouldn't even be having this discussion.
