08-07-2025
Guernsey's new political committees finalised: find out who is doing what
Guernsey's election has drawn to an official close, with committee members for each of the government's working groups now decided.
The island's most senior committee - Policy and Resources - was selected last Wednesday (2 July), with Committee Presidents chosen last Friday (4 July).
After taking the weekend to deliberate, those Presidents then proposed choices for their committee members at the States on Monday (7 July).
Many ended up standing unopposed; however, places could also be contested by candidates choosing to stand 'from the floor'.
So, who is doing what? Who is working with whom? And what do we know so far about each committee's goals?
The Committee for Economic Development
The President of the Committee for Economic Development is Sasha Kazantseva-Miller.
She served on the committee last political term, and her manifesto promises "more ambitious and innovative approaches to economic development" - including tax reforms which increase contributions from the corporate sector and shift away from levying employment.
Her ideas also include accelerating the Guernsey Development Agency's regeneration plan and supporting the creation of an offshore wind farm.
She nominated Deputies Rhona Humphreys, Haley Camp, Andrew Niles, and Lee Van Katwick: all first-time States' members who were elected to the committee without contest.
Deputy Humphreys is a member of the States' only party, Forward Guernsey.
Their manifesto supports the development of an offshore wind farm - it also proposes a "wholesale reform of our entire tax system", with members rejecting GST+ in its current form.
Deputies Camp, Niles, and Van Katwick's manifestos all state economic development as one of their key priorities.
Some of their ideas include promoting entrepreneurialism, limiting government overspending, and broadening the corporate tax base.
The Committee for Education, Sport and Culture
The President of the Committee for Education, Sport and Culture is former teacher Paul Montague.
Whilst he originally said he did not wish to lead the committee, his manifesto states his experience working as a teacher on the island has "shown how damaging political indecision can be".
His ideas for education include attracting and retaining more secondary school teachers, carrying out a review of primary school provision, and completing the post-16 further education campus on time.
He nominated four candidates, all of whom were elected without contest: Andy Cameron, Sarah Hansmann-Rouxel, Aiden Matthews, and Jayne Ozanne.
Deputies Cameron and Matthews both served last term, whilst Deputy Hansmann-Rouxel served between 2016 and 2020, and Deputy Ozanne is new to the States.
Their manifestos variously suggest expanding the provision of free early years education from 15 to 30 hours, carrying out a primary school review, and introducing a key worker retention plan for local teachers.
The Committee for Employment and Social Security
The President of the Committee for Employment and Social Security is Tina Bury, who served as a committee member on ESS last term.
Her manifesto outlines commitments to reforming the way long-term care is currently funded - so as not to overburden the island's youth - and in her election speech she said she wanted to improve parental leave and increase protections for people who are made redundant.
Her nominated candidates are all first-time Deputies, and they were all elected without contest: Garry Collins, David Dorrity, Jayne Ozanne, and Tom Rylatt.
Deputy Ozanne's manifesto prioritises "creating equal opportunity" by introducing a Key Worker Retention Plan and encouraging younger islanders to stay in Guernsey with a Savings Deposit Property Scheme.
Deputy Rylatt is a member of Forward Guernsey, whose manifesto promises the introduction of similar initiatives.
The Committee for Health and Social Care
The Health and Social Care President is former doctor George Oswald - who worked as a consultant physician for the island's Medical Specialist Group and also served as a non-voting member of HSC last political term.
His manifesto clearly outlines health as his top priority: detailing ideas such as reviewing the primary care model, tackling the key worker housing crisis, delivering the hospital upgrade, and prioritising social care reform.
His four chosen candidates were all also elected without opposition: Aiden Matthews, Sally Rochester, Jennifer Strachan, and Munazza Malik.
Deputy Matthews served on the HSC committee last term; the other three are all new deputies.
Their manifestos detail various ideas for Health and Social Care reform, such as modernising the hospital, providing more accommodation to help with staff recruitment, expanding mental health services, reviewing how healthcare services are funded, and reforming the long-term care system.
The Committee for Environment and Infrastructure
The President of the Committee of Environment and Infrastructure is Adrian Gabriel.
He served as the committee's Vice President last political term.
His manifesto prioritises "respecting and preserving the island's natural assets" and supporting infrastructure projects such as the Guernsey Development Agency and the Bridge regeneration project.
He put forward four candidates who were elected without contest: former Environment and Infrastructure committee member Andy Cameron, Alderney representative Alex Snowdon, and new Deputies Sally Rochester and Bruno Kay-Mouat.
As an Alderney representative, Deputy Snowdon will likely seek to prioritise securing funding for the island's runway to be redeveloped.
Deputy Rochester and Deputy Kay-Mouat's manifestos both detail better connectivity and investing in infrastructure as key targets.
The Committee for Housing
It is the first time Guernsey's ever had a Housing Committee, and the States has elected former Guernsey Housing Association CEO Steve Williams as its President.
Housing was a critical election issue, and Deputy Williams' campaign focused on his experience in the sector.
His manifesto states his "key aim is to deliver real results in tackling our housing problem, as quickly as possible".
Some of his ideas for reforming housing include: reviewing housing projects that have been delayed (such as Leales Yard); building up rather than out; improving delivery by the Development and Planning Authority; and supporting first-time buyers and renters through the introduction of various tax measures.
His choices for committee members were all accepted without contest.
They are Sasha Kazantseva-Miller, David Dorrity, Garry Collins, and Rhona Humphreys.
The Committee for Home Affairs
The Home Affairs President Mark Leadbeater said in his election speech that he would look to reform the police complaints law and potentially look at electronic tagging for prisoners.
He is also a longtime advocate for reforming the island's drug laws and legalising cannabis.
His candidates - Alex Snowdon, Rob Curgenven, Munazza Malik, and John Gollop - were contested by Simon Vermeulen, who was proposed from the floor by Jayne Ozanne.
Deputy Vermeulen - who served on the Home Affairs Committee last term - was ultimately elected in place of Deputy Curgenven.
Deputy Vermeulen said he had asked Deputy Leadbeater to nominate him, but suspected his request had come "too late in the day" as he had not been selected as one of the President's first choices.
However, he added: "I'm very happy to be on that committee, and itching to get back to work really.
"I'm hoping we really do hit the ground running, we deal with the issues that are in place at the moment, and also deal with some the issues - things like police complaints - that we didn't have time for last time."
Deputy Leadbeater said whilst he was disappointed that Deputy Curgenven was not successful, he was happy to work with "anyone" and believed the system was "democratic".
Of his goals, Deputy Leadbeater added: "My priority is in the area of justice policy, and also population management - as it's certainly been a hot topic on the lips of many people I've spoken to during the election campaign".
The Development and Planning Authority
The Development and Planning Authority's President is Yvonne Burford, who served as President of Scrutiny last political term.
In her election speech, she stated her top priority was reviewing the rules which decide which sites can or cannot be built on - meaning she could end up working quite closely with the new Housing Committee.
Indeed, one of her choices for committee members is Housing President Steve Williams.
Her other choices are Marc Laine, Sarah Hansmann-Rouxel, and Lee Van Katwyk - all three of whom detailed ideas for planning reform and building more houses in their manifestos.
Deputy Burford also hopes to improve the reputation of the Planning Authority, arguing: "There is real scope to change the public perception, and that starts with good communication and clearly articulated, evidence-based decisions".
The States' Assembly and Constitution Committee
This is the group responsible for overseeing procedures in connection with the island's constitution and government.
Its president is Sarah Hansmann-Rouxel, who said in her election speech that she would like to look at introducing mental health first aid training for Deputies.
Her choices for committee members are a mix of old and new - longstanding politicians Yvonne Burford, Gavin St Pier, and John Gollop were elected alongside newcomer Tom Rylatt.
They were all selected without contest.
The Scrutiny Management Committee
This is the committee responsible for critically reviewing the decisions made by all other committees.
Its new President is Andy Sloan, and he will be joined by new Deputy Hayley Camp as well as previous States' member Liam McKenna.
The Transport Licensing Authority
This is the group responsible for determining applications for air route licenses, in addition to any other transport licensing functions that the States might need.
Its new President is longstanding Deputy John Gollop.
His committee members were all elected without contest: Alderney representative Edward Hill, new Deputies Garry Collins and Jayne Ozanne, and previous States' member Neil Inder.
The States' Trading Supervisory Board
The STSB is responsible for overseeing companies where the States is a shareholder or has commercial interest - such as Guernsey Electricity, Guernsey Post, Guernsey Dairy, Guernsey Airport, and States' Works.
STSB's President Mark Helyar previously served as Vice President of Policy and Resources under Peter Ferbrache.
He nominated Bruno Kay-Mouat and Andrew Niles to join him on the committee - Yvonne Burford was put forward from the floor by Paul Montague.
Deputy Burford received 19 backers but lost out to Deputy Helyar's choices who received 23 votes each.
Who is left?
Some Deputies serve multiple roles across many committees; others do not end up joining any committees at all.
With his bid for Home Affairs unsuccessful, Deputy Rob Curgenven is one of the three Deputies who will not be serving on one of the States' 13 main committees this term.
Deputy Chris Blin - who served on the Development and Planning Authority and Transport and Licensing Authority last term - is another Deputy who is currently not placed.
However, his manifesto states his "principal goal is making an offshore wind farm a reality", and he has expressed interest in joining the offshore wind subcommittee, which could be a potential branch of Policy and Resources.
Finally, Deputy David Goy - who is another new face - is also not currently placed.
His manifesto focused on tax fairness, economic diversity, food and energy security, and sovereignty.
