Tuesday 13 July 2010

No Southern Comfort in Scrutiny…..



Regular readers will be aware of the desperate attempts by this Jersey government to suppress bloggers like us. We thought that we had identified the most repressive censors in the system – but life is ever full of surprises.

We had also predicted that the Scrutiny system will become more and more restricted with access evermore denied to the general public.

That is precisely what has happened and the likes of Senator Shenton have dreamed up all sorts of instant, petty rules to prevent us video recording Scrutiny proceedings whilst the “accredited” press carry on regardless.

There has even been an attempt by PPC at defining what “media” is and to invent a set of rules, with States approval, to ensure that only the favoured few – JEP, BBC Jersey, Channel TV and 103 – are privy to the secrets of the government “press conferences” etc. This is still ongoing…

We had already predicted that the secret part of Scrutiny Panel meetings – the “Part B” on the agenda – would become ever greater in response to our attending and reporting on Scrutiny matters. In other words, those items that are discussed in total privacy – no “accredited” press, no bloggers, and no tax paying public allowed.
Just the sort of secrecy that you might find at GCHQ, the CIA or the Kremlin.

Yet, we never dreamed that a totally secret Scrutiny Panel meeting would take place so soon OR that it would be the very first act of Deputy Southern as the newly appointed Chair of the Health & Social Security & Housing to implement it!!!!!

Today, that Panel’s regular, advertised public meeting was scheduled to take place at 9.30am in the States building.
However, when your Team Voice reporter turned up to see and hear the proceedings we learned something very interesting….

Not only had the other Members of the Panel – Deputy Debbie De Sousa and Constable Mezbourian- failed to attend, so the meeting was inquorate and had to be cancelled…
And, not only had Deputy De Sousa already told us how stupid it was for Southern to call his first meeting as Chairman at just the same time that Minister Le Marquand was delivering his Graham Power “kangaroo court” statement in the same building to all interested States Members….

But, when Deputy Southern appeared at 9.36 a.m. (in a chic new safari-suit with matching white hunter hat and knobbly knees) to face an empty room and was challenged by Team Voice - he confirmed that the entire meeting’s bog-standard eleven point agenda was secret, to be considered as totally Part B and that this was a decision made by his entire Panel!!!!!

So, the leader of Jersey’s very own so called “Democratic” party has invoked a total ban by virtue of States Standing Order 138(6) in order that nobody can know what is discussed and both Deputy De Sousa and Constable Mezbourian supposedly support him!!!!

So there you have it – wave bye, bye to any scraps of Freedom of Expression, Right to Know or Public Interest under the ECHR – this is Southern country where SECRECY RULES OK!!!


Thomas Wellard

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

You just cant make this stuff up. Now I know why Monty is giving it some Brighton Rock

Anonymous said...

Just a suggestion but why don't you form a local company as a sole-trader with news in the company name. Costs about £30 pounds.

Then subscribe to the news networks like Reuters etc. and then you will have as much standing as those that already operate.

To prevent you their after would be unlawfull would it not... oops this is Jersey

Anonymous said...

What a surprise!! Whoever said Southern did honesty?

He won't be around much longer.

Anonymous said...

I saw Southern sporting his new chapaeu
did no one ever tell him short people should NOT wear hats they look like mushrooms or poisonous little toadstools; Geof is certainly no magic mushroom

GeeGee said...

.......and two of those Scrutiny Panel Members are also members of the Jersey DEMOCRATIC Alliance??

Amazing.

Anonymous said...

This sort of arrogant behaviour is not new. The authoritarian tendancy is strong in Jersey political culture. What hope is there when the would be "Opposition" is as bad as the Government in its desire to conduct affairs without public scrutiny. I think we need an explanation from the Deputy.

Big E said...

Ha ha ha,
aaahhhah aahha ahahahhah aahahahaahhahahah hahahaa ahaa ha

WELL,
WHAT ELSE CAN YOU DO BUT LAUGH ???

Anonymous said...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy
See [13] little reminder.

Anonymous said...

Southern is a complete disgrace he will be out at the next election the quicker the better

Anonymous said...

I just looked up how to become accredited media and from one website on a football club it states that you have to apply to the club for accredited media status.

Therefore, I would surmise that to become accredited over here you would have to apply to some body over here, and if that body is the sates then it just ain't gonna happen!

Anonymous said...

Hopefully the Deputy will at long last reply to the serious allegations made about him,particularly as they concern policies he is now scrutinising.

Anonymous said...

When will old moan pants Wellard stop bleating and stand for election? With Wellard and Gino 'Paperclip transparancy' Risioli teamed up the public would soon be able to find out just how mcu we are in debt. Which we would be because these two would be so tied up with counting staples and writing lists that the island would go to the dogs.