Scrutiny concerned about Environment Department Budget cuts
Scrutiny
5 November 2025
The Environment, Housing, and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel (the ‘Panel’) is concerned about the impact that the proposed Budget cuts on the Environment Department (ED) will have on the wide-ranging work of the department. This includes regulatory services, biosecurity, public health and countryside management. In a Public Hearing with the Minister for the Environment, Deputy Steve Luce, said that ‘dark clouds on the horizon are startling to roll in’ and that there are ‘significant challenges’ ahead.The proposed cuts come at a time of growing regulatory needs, from workstreams like the new Food (Jersey) Regulations that are being proposed to address food labelling and allergies, as well as the recently adopted the Draft Residential Tenancy (Jersey) Law.
The Panel also raised the fact that the Climate Emergency has been removed from this year’s Budget as an Environmental Wellbeing Risk. Following a Budget Hearing with the Infrastructure Minister, wherein it was stated that the flood defences as part of the Shoreline Management Plan are essential but could be downgraded and delayed by future governments, the Environment Minister agreed with the Panel that the removal of the Climate Emergency as a risk should be looked at in order to ensure it remains a focussed priority.
The ED needs to make £749,000 in staff related savings in the proposed Budget, which the Minister said they will manage by closing all open vacancies and not replacing staff. However, the ED has smaller teams of highly qualified staff, and the loss of just one person’s expert knowledge can have a massive effect.
Deputy Hilary Jeune, Chair of the Panel, said: ‘The impact of these cuts is not just that some bushes don’t get cut back on a path, or that a survey on the impact of an invasive species doesn’t get done; these cuts have the potential to hit the competitiveness of our economy, livelihoods and essential regulatory work. When the Minister himself is concerned about the effect of these cuts on the services his department can provide, then we should all take note.
‘Not only is the reduction in budget a worry, but there is no contingency financing at all for the department which means that any unexpected incidents, such another major storm, a disease threat to livestock or the public, would mean other areas are de-prioritised further. In addition, the Brexit re-set negotiations that are about to get underway between the UK and the EU, will require Jersey to make changes to around 89 pieces of legislation to bring us in-line if we are to be able to benefit from the improved trading conditions. There is no funding allowed for this. That is a potential threat to our economic growth and to the livelihoods of our fishers, farmers and businesses across the Island.’
You can watch the Hearing back on our website or on YouTube.
