States Meeting Summary 21 January
States Assembly
21 January 2026
Public BusinessAt the start of the meeting, Deputy Geoff Southern informed the Bailiff and the States Assembly that he was resigning from the Economic and International Affairs Scrutiny Panel.
The Assembly then resumed with the debate on a proposal to introduce an Assisted Dying Law, put forward by the Council of Ministers.
P.65 Draft Assisted Dying (Jersey) Law 202-
If approved, the Law would allow a person who has a terminal illness and who is experiencing, or expected to experience, unbearable suffering to choose to end their life with the help of a medical professional.
They must:
- Be aged 18 or over and have been resident in Jersey for at least 12 months.
- Have been assessed by medical professionals and diagnosed with a physical condition that is expected to cause their death within 6 months, or 12 months if the condition involves degeneration of the nervous system.
- Have the capacity to make the decision, which must be voluntary, clearly expressed, settled, and informed.
The Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition in principle, with 32 votes for, 14 votes against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
The Assisted Dying Review Panel then called the proposition in, which means the debate relating to the details proposed within the law will resume once the Panel has completed its scrutiny of them. This work is expected to be completed in time for the 24 February sitting.
Skip to 6 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the conclusion of the debate.
P.90 Draft Policing of Parks (Jersey) Amendment Regulations 202-
The Minister for Infrastructure, Constable Andy Jehan, proposed to re-designate Springfield Sports Ground under the Policing of Parks (Jersey) Regulation 2005 to lift the current blanket bank on dogs within its boundaries, and allow owners to walk dogs on leads along the established paths within the sports ground.
The Assembly voted to APPROVE the Minister’s proposition, with 43 votes for, 1 vote against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
Skip to 36 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.91 Draft Jersey Gas Company Amendment Law 202-
The Minister for Justice and Home Affairs, Deputy Mary Le Hegarat, proposed to amend the Jersey Gas Company (Jersey) Law 1989 to provide the Minister with the necessary powers to obtain information from the Gas Company in a timely and proactive manner.
This will support their functions in respect of public safety, and the security and continued supply of gas in the Island.
Deputy David Warr proposed an amendment to the proposition to reduce the penalties outlined in the draft Law in relation to the failure to disclose a reportable event to the Minister or provide information to the Minister when directed to do so.
As the amendment was lodged on Tuesday 20 January, the States Assembly were asked to reduce the lodging period to enable the debate to go ahead.
The Assembly voted to REJECT the request, with 3 votes for, 36 votes against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
Skip to 1 hour and 8 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate relating to reducing the lodging period in full.
The Assembly then voted to APPROVE the Minister’s proposition, with 44 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
Skip to 1 hour and 18 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate relating to the proposition in full.
P.97 Draft Animal Welfare (Jersey) Law 202-
The Minister for the Environment, Deputy Steve Luce, proposed to introduce a new Law to strengthen and modernise Jersey’s approach to animal welfare.
The proposed law, which is informed by international best practice, would create a range of offences against animals, and an inspection and enforcement regime under the supervision of the States Veterinary Officer and designated inspectors.
The Law would also enable a more proactive response to emerging issues by:
- Allowing the Minister to make orders to implement changes quickly, informed by best practice and scientific advice.
- Providing powers to introduce further legislation in areas such as licencing, procedures, import restrictions and animal identification, ensuring continued protection of animal welfare and human health.
The Assembly voted to APPROVE the proposition in principle, with 46 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Panel then called the proposition in, which means the debate relating to the details proposed within the law will resume once the Panel has completed its scrutiny of them. This work is expected to be completed in time for the 24 March sitting.
Skip to 2 hours and 5 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.103 Amendments to Standing Orders – Jersey Youth Assembly
The Privileges and Procedures Committee proposed changes to Standing Orders to enable the Jersey Youth Assembly (JYA) to interact directly with the States Assembly.
Under the proposals, the JYA would be able to:
- Present up to three reports each school year directly to the Assembly
- Receive formal responses from Ministers
- Take part in on States Assembly in-Committee debate each year related to their reports, with representation from JYA.
The Assembly voted to APPROVE the Committee’s proposition, with 46 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
Skip to 2 hours and 59 minutes into this morning’s recording to watch the beginning of debate and from the start of this afternoon’s recording for the continuation.
P.104 Draft Elections (Jersey) Amendment No 2 Law 202-
The Privileges and Procedures Committee proposed two administrative changes to the Draft Elections (Jersey) Amendment No 2 Law to assist with the operation of the 2026 election.
The first is to transfer the responsibility for the production of ballot papers for a public election from the electoral administrators to the Judicial Greffier. This allows for a UK provider to produce and circulate postal ballots due to an expected increase in their use and to save costs.
The second allows for a change in where votes can be counted. This would allow counting to take place at venues other than those used for polling stations, some of which are schools, in order to facilitate Monday counting.
The Comité des Connétables proposed an amendment to the proposition to ensure responsibility for deciding where and when votes are counted remains with the Autorisé and Electoral Administrator. The draft proposals seek to move this responsibility under the remit of the Jersey Electoral Authority.
The Assembly voted to APPROVE the Comités amendment with 29 votes for, 17 votes against and 0 abstentions,
You can view how Members voted on our website.
The Assembly then voted to APPROVE the Committee’s proposition, as amended, with 35 votes for, 9 votes against and 2 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
Skip to 21 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.106 Draft Companies (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-
The Minister for External Relations, Deputy Ian Gorst, proposed various amendment to the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991 that are aimed at maintaining the flexibility of the Law.
The amendments are largely technical or to clarify points, with the aim of enhancing competitiveness, rather than wholesale restatement or significant change in policy direction.
The Assembly then voted to APPROVE the Minister’s proposition, with 45 votes for, 0 votes against and 0 abstentions.
You can view how Members voted on our website.
Skip to 2 hours and 26 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the debate in full.
P.107 Draft Cyber Security (Jersey) Law 202-
The Assistant Minister for Sustainable Economic Development, Deputy Moz Scott, proposed a Draft Cyber Security Law which would establish a statutory framework to strengthen Jersey's resilience against cyber threats and safeguard critical infrastructure. It:
- Introduces the Jersey Cyber Security Centre as the national authority for cyber security, with a Director granted operational independence.
- Provides enforcement mechanisms at Ministerial level, including civil penalties of up to £10k for non-compliance and criminal sanctions for false or misleading information.
- Designates Operators of Essential Services which are subject to statutory duties.
Read more: bit.ly/44NgByd
Skip to 2 hours and 48 minutes into this afternoon’s recording to watch the start of the debate.
The Assembly will finish the debate and votes on the second and third readings tomorrow morning.
Adjournment
The States Assembly will reconvene at 9:30am tomorrow, Thursday 22 January, to continue the debate on the Cyber Security Law.
