Guernsey States Provisionally Approves Temporary Housing for Local Residents

Proposals enabling local residents to reside in new temporary housing have received in-principle approval from Guernsey’s States. The initiative, put forth by Deputies Aidan Matthews and Peter Ferbrache, garnered 33 votes. Previously, Guernsey’s Policy and Resources (P&R) Committee had suggested constructing new temporary accommodation for visiting construction personnel and essential workers. Matthews stated that it would be unacceptable for the States to offer housing to visiting staff without also assisting local residents. Deputy Andy Taylor initially presented this proposal, but he was unable to bring it before the States Assembly due to being absent for the birth of his daughter. During discussions regarding these proposals, several deputies voiced apprehension concerning the concept of temporary accommodation. Deputy Sue Aldwell expressed concern that the locations might evolve into “ghettos that stay put”. Peter Roffey, president of employment and social security, raised worries that the States might inadvertently generate an issue if local families occupied these homes and subsequently had no alternative housing once the planning permission expired. Victoria Oliver, who presides over the development and planning authority, concurred that this approach could lead to further long-term difficulties. She stated: “We need to be really careful about what kind of accommodation we build”. The Policy and Resources (P&R) Committee endorsed the modification to the 2025 budget. Heidi Soulsby, vice-president of P&R, commented: “We have a housing crisis and any opportunity to make things better we should be grabbing.” Deputies have also given their in-principle approval to a separate proposal offering additional tax incentives to landlords. This initiative, proposed by Deputies Sam Haskins and David Mahoney, secured 27 votes, while 11 States members cast votes against it. It will provide an income tax exemption for rental payments made to landlords by lodgers, up to a maximum of £10,000 per room, subject to specific criteria. Among these criteria is the requirement that the room must be located within the taxpayer’s principal private residence. Deputies are scheduled to cast their votes on the final versions of these proposals as part of the 2025 budget later in the current week. For updates, follow BBC Guernsey on X and Facebook. Story ideas can be submitted to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external websites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.