'Housing, GST and the environment' on Guernsey's Chief Minister's new year wishlist

• Deputy Peter Ferbrache looks ahead to 2023 and tells ITV Channel presenter Jonathan Wills about his top priorities

Guernsey's Chief Minister has told ITV Channel that housing, GST and the environment will lead the States' resolutions for the next year.

Like much of the UK, the Channel Islands struggle with a lack of affordable housing - and Deputy Peter Ferbrache says this is a top priority for 2023.

Deputy Ferbrache said: "Because Guernsey is an affluent community, it sucks in people.

"We've had net emigration of about 500 people over recent years, bearing in mind with a population of 63,000 people, that's a heck of a lot percentage-wise.

"We've spent as a government, over £32 million this year, I'd buy the land and I wish social housing will be built.

"But frankly, we haven't done much or anything material in relation to non-social housing policy.

"There's no easy solution, there's no quick solution, but that's the kind of thing we're going to do."

With GST being a hot topic in Guernsey during 2022, politicians expect this will continue over the next 12 months.

Deputy Ferbrache says that the island could start to see a major impact on its services if something is not implemented.

"Well, the implications will be that we'll still have money to pay the bills. But what we're not going to have is money to eventually improve the infrastructure, we may have a revenue deficit going forward.

"In which case we'd be saying to people, 'we're very sorry you're gonna have to pay for some of your health care that was previously free.

"You're gonna have to pay for the service. We're gonna have to cut that service.'

"There's no magic in the world and that's what would happen."

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