POLITICAL VIOLENCE - Slash and bend

"This election seems to be the most dirty I have ever known in Jersey" said the elderly woman as I tied a poster to a lamppost outside her window. I agreed with her and expanded on the most recent dirty tricks campaign being run by the Establishement and its media.

There is certainly an air of deperation from the Right now that the economic situation has been revealed to be worse than previously thought. The prospect of a £95 million deficit, now structural, will call for some radical and desperate measures after the election and the Right is securely back in power. The Establishment will be pursuing a policy of Austerity, which amounts to cuts in public services, cuts in public sector jobs, pressure on public sector salaries, GST increases and new "user pays" charges.


 We are fully aware of the existence of organised far right groups in the island. Indeed Jersey is famous in political history for its sons and their involvment with organisations like Combat 18, an extremist and racist UK grouplet. Abuse is their hallmark and violence is only the next logical step.


 Yesterday as the States met for the final meeting of the term, members arriving at 9.30am were greeted with the sight of a flower basket pole outside the Royal Court steps, bent at an angle of 45 degrees. Quite how this miracle of alcohol fueled strength had been achieved alluded all.

Attached to the pole was one of my elections posters and another for Reform Jersey. Both remained intact, but the obvious conclusion could only be that there was some connection between this act of criminal damage and the presence of political posters. My own thoughts are that it was not directed at the Left particularly but as a protest against the political class in general. Such are the frustrations in society that such acts of criminal violence become an expression of protest.

Approaching the Chief of the States of Jersey Police at lunch time today, (doing the usual PR exercise to reassure the suits there is no crime in King Street at 1pm), I enquired about the pole and whether the culprits might be ascertained. I was referred to the beat officer responsible for the area who noted that no complaints of criminal damage had been notified by TTS. Apparently there is no CCTV in the vicinity of that pole, so once again we see that the omnipotent CCTV fails when it's really needed.

The violence and criminality has not simply been restricted to a poll in the Royal Square, one of my banners on the round about above the underpass has been slashed with a knife. Needless to say, the banners either side of mine; that of Senatorial Candidate Malcolm Ferrey and the Establishment candidate in District No.1 St Helier, remain pristine. Thus political violence is selective and we can draw a conclusion from whence it originates.

REINVIGORATED - NICK LE CORNU is standing for re-election as Deputy in District No.1 St Helier

Last night I was nominated as a candidate for a further term as Deputy in District No.1 St Helier, the district in which I live.

There are six candidates for the three seats.

“Austerity Jersey Style”

I will be campaigning against the “Austerity Jersey Style”, that will inevitable be pursued by the Establishment in response to the £95 million budget deficit left by the retiring (and hopefully gone for ever after 15^th October) Treasury Minister. There will be cuts in Public Services, cuts in public sector jobs, continued pressure on public sector wages and increases in GST, a pernicious tax on the working man and woman’s weekly budget. Every time GST is increased 1% the sum of £15 million goes to government. On these and many other issues, that affect the majority of constituents in my district, I will elaborate further on the door, in my campaign literature and at HUSTINGS to be held in the Town Hall on 8^th October at 7.00pm.

Here is my Proposer’s speech. I am grateful to Malcolm Ray as Proposer and to all my seconders for their outstanding act of solidarity:

“I know Nick to be a decent and honourable family man.

The important characteristic of anyone is what they have achieved and what they are capable of doing in the future.

Nick Le Cornu’s track record speaks for itself.

Nick was born in the island, educated at Victoria College and went to University in Warwick and Caen, in France.

He studied Law, qualified as a Solicitor and practiced in London and the City.

From a position of relative privilege, he has been a tireless campaigner for social justice since his return to the island.

In the early '90's he formed the group "Pro Choice" along with a number of local women and men, to campaign for women's rights and legalise abortion.

Nick is Secretary of Jersey Human Rights Group, which produced important reports on surveillance and questioned the necessity of the introduction of Tasers.

He helped found the "A Team" and campaigned for Option "A" during the April 2013 Referendum.

He was elected as a Deputy in a by election in March this year, gaining 20% more votes than the Establishment candidate.

I know for a fact that before election, he provided his services pro bono to represent a dozen workers before the Jersey Employment Tribunal,

following unfair dismissals.

In July he helped organise the Equality March for Equal Marriage.

Nick has continued this ethic of service into his constituency work.

We need now to focus on the REAL and pressing issues facing us in the future.

We need a politician who is going to stand up for working people, from every community and nationality.

We need someone who is fearless and determined and has a proven track record of fighting for the rights and concerns of those who would otherwise be voiceless.

I'm confident that Nick Le Cornu is that type of politician.

He is open and accommodating, ready at all times to try and find a solution to a constituents' problem.

Nick’s policies will include fighting against any increase in GST.

He wants a living wage for all workers, not just a minimum wage. He will campaign to end precarious employment contracts and in particular Zero Hours contracts.

He will lend his support to Trade Unionists who want to fight the cuts in jobs and services that are now inevitable as a result of the broken “low tax, low spend” model  that will result in a £35 million budget deficit this year and  £50 million in 2015

Nick will campaign to force the States to find the money to build a 21^st Century Hospital on one site, suitable for islanders’ needs.

We need a health service where patients sent to England from Jersey are not left sleeping in an Airport lobby because of lack of administrative coordination.

Rest assured, Nick will continue to campaign for social justice in Jersey and constitutional reform.”

I will be posting videos and maintaining a critique of the campaign as it progresses. 

Be assured this election will be about policies to be pursued in the near future and the capabity of any candidate to carry out that task.

This is YOUR candidate:

The Establishment Candidate

One thing I would point out is that there is an overt “Establishment” Candidate running in District No.1 - parachuted in from a Country Parish, with neither affinity or attachment to St Helier and policies inimical to the social and economic interests of the majority of constituents. More of this I will write later.