French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the spoken Latin in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues d'oïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, which French (Francien) has largely supplanted. French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the (Germanic) Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to France's past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, most notably Haitian Creole. A French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French.
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries.
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is a Crown dependency located near the coast of Normandy, France. Jersey was part of the Duchy of Normandy, whose dukes went on to become kings of England from 1066. After Normandy was lost by the kings of England in the 13th century, and the ducal title surrendered to France, Jersey and the other Channel Islands remained attached to the English crown.
The origins of the legislature of Jersey lie in the system of self-government according to Norman law guaranteed to the Channel Islands by King John following the division of Normandy in 1204.[2] The Assembly of the States of Jersey has exercised uncontested legislative powers since 1771, when the concurrent law-making power of the Royal Court of Jersey was abolished.[3]
The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, consisting of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark and some smaller islands. They are considered the remnants of the Duchy of Normandy and, although they are not part of the United Kingdom, the UK is responsible for the defence and international relations of the islands. The Crown dependencies are not members of the Commonwealth of Nations or of the European Union. They have a total population of about 164,541, and the bailiwicks' capitals, Saint Helier and Saint Peter Port, have populations of 33,500 and 18,207, respectively. The total area of the islands is 198 km2.
A legislature is a deliberative assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. Legislatures form important parts of most governments; in the separation of powers model, they are often contrasted with the executive and judicial branches of government.
The Assembly passes and amends laws and regulations; approves the annual budget and taxation; appoints and removes the Chief Minister, ministers, presidents and members of committees; debates matters proposed by the Council of Ministers, by ministers or by individual members. Members are also able to ask questions to find out information and to hold ministers to account.[4]Executive powers are exercised by a Chief Minister and nine ministers, elected from among the members of the Assembly and known collectively as the Council of Ministers. Ministers are accountable to the assembly for the conduct of their departments.
The executive is the organ exercising authority in and holding responsibility for the governance of a state. The executive executes and enforces law.
The Chief Minister of Jersey is the head of government of Jersey, leading the Council of Ministers, which makes up part of the Government of Jersey. The head of government is not directly elected by the people but rather by the legislature, the States Assembly).
Composition
The constitution of the States is set out in the States of Jersey Law 2005.[5] It is a unicameral parliament.
In government, unicameralism is the practice of having one legislative or parliamentary chamber. Thus, a unicameral parliament or unicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of one chamber or house.
In the current assembly, elected voting members comprise eight[6] Senators (elected on an island-wide basis), twenty-nine Deputies (elected to represent single- or multi-member constituencies), and twelve Connétables (head of each parish "who are members of the States by virtue of their office"). In previous assemblies, the number of Senators was ten. The reduction in the number of Senators was politically controversial and attempts were made, unsuccessfully, to prevent the Privy Council from approving the proposal.[7]
Connétables in Jersey and Guernsey are the elected heads of the Parishes. They are often called 'constables' in English. The constables are entitled each to carry a silver-tipped baton of office.
The Channel Island of Jersey is divided into twelve administrative districts or parishes. All have access to the sea and share a name with their ancient parish churches.
An ex officio member is a member of a body who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term ex officio is Latin, meaning literally "from the office", and the sense intended is "by right of office"; its use dates back to the Roman Republic.
There are also five non-voting members appointed by the Crown:[8]
the Bailiff–who is the President (presiding officer); in his absence, the Deputy Bailiff or the Greffier, Deputy Greffier or an elected member presides
the Lieutenant Governor of Jersey–who regularly attends the States but by convention only speaks at the ceremonial sittings marking his appointment and leaving office
the Dean of Jersey–who conducts the opening prayers in French at every sitting and who may speak on any issue
the Attorney General–the principal legal adviser to the States who may be called on to provide legal advice during sittings
the Solicitor General–the Attorney General's deputy.
The clerk of the Assembly is known as the Greffier of the States.[9]
The Viscount is the executive officer of the States (but is no longer a member of the Assembly).[10]
Under the States of Jersey Act 2005, 22 of the 51 members form the executive: ten as ministers in the Council of Ministers and twelve as assistant ministers. During the 2008–2011 assembly, 17 members sat on scrutiny panels, six sit only on the Planning Applications panel or the Privileges and Procedures Committee; and seven had no role other than as a member.[11] Following widespread criticisms of the system of ministerial government introduced in December 2005, the assembly of the States of Jersey agreed in March 2011 to establish an independent electoral commission to review the make-up of the assembly and government.[12]
Elections are held every three years, with the most recent being in 2014. In the 2008–2011 assembly, four members were affiliated to the Jersey Democratic Alliance,[13] but three of them subsequently left the party and continued to sit as independents.[14] In the 2011 elections, all candidates stood as independents. In the 2014 elections, candidates stood for the newly formed Reform Jersey for the first time, with 3 being elected as Deputies.
Legislative functions
A main type of legislation made by the States is known in English simply as a 'Law', and in French as a Loi (not an 'Act' as in the United Kingdom—in Jersey an Act or Acte of the States is an administrative enactment and may be in the nature of secondary legislation).
After a Law is adopted by the States it must receive Royal Assent and be registered with the Royal Court of Jersey before it is 'passed'.
Scrutiny functions
Members of the Assembly are responsible for scrutinizing the work of the Council of Ministers, ministers and their departments.
Scrutiny panels of backbench members of the assembly have been established to examine
economic affairs,
environment, housing and infrastructure
corporate services,
education and home affairs and
health, social security and housing.
A Public Accounts Committee (PAC) also scrutinizes the spending of public finances.[15] The real utility of the panels is said to be "that of independent critique which holds ministers to account and constructively engages with policy which is deficient".[16]
History
Royal coat of arms (Hanoverian) on the States building in St. Helier
The legislature derives its name from the estates (French: états) of the Crown (represented by the Bailiff and Jurats), the Church (the rectors of the parishes) and the people (represented by the Connétables) from whom the assembly was originally summoned.
Jersey's political history begins as part of the Duchy of Normandy. However when the King of France stripped King John of England of the title ‘Duke of Normandy’ the people of Jersey and the other Channel Islands rebelled against the French King maintaining the sovereignty of the 'rightful' Duke.
In 1259 Henry III signed the Treaty of Paris resigning his claim to the Duchy of Normandy except the Channel Islands. The Channel Islands were not absorbed into the Kingdom of England but two offices were appointed; Warden (now Lieutenant Governor) and Bailiff.
1771 Code of Laws
Originally the Royal Court had legislative power but by the sixteenth century a legislative assembly within the Royal Court was convened. The Royal Court and the States both legislated until with the fixing in 1771 of the Code des Lois it was established that the States had a legislative monopoly.[3]
The earliest extant Act of the States dates from 1524. The States are mentioned in a document of 1497 regarding the endowments of the grammar schools; by 1526 attendance by members at the assembly was evidently a requirement, as in that year the Rector of Saint Mary was fined for failure to attend.[17]
In the early seventeenth century separate minutes of the States of Jersey were first recorded.
When the monarchy was restored, King Charles II who had escaped to Jersey on his way to exile in France rewarded Jersey with the power to levy customs duties. This power, exercised by the Assembly of Governor, Bailiff and Jurats, was finally taken over by the States of Jersey in 1921, thereby enabling the States to control the budget independently of the Lieutenant Governor.[citation needed]
The States voted on 6 November 1856 to adopt a law to add 14 Deputies to the assembly to counterbalance the mismatch of population and voting power between town and country. The first Deputies were elected 12 January 1857.
The first election by secret ballot was held 1 December 1891.
États de Jersey and arms on the original terminal building of Jersey Airport built by the States in 1937
Until the constitutional reforms brought about in 1948 to strengthen the separation between legislature and judiciary, Jurats were the senior politicians, elected for life by islandwide suffrage, and were the presidents of committees and sat in the Royal Court. In 1948 the Jurats were replaced in the legislature by Senators, who at first were elected on an island-wide basis for mandates of 9 years (subsequently reduced to 6 years). The rectors were also removed from the States in 1948 (with the exception of the Dean as Rector of St. Helier, who remained but lost his vote), and replaced by an increased number of Deputies.
The urban-rural cleavage which successive reforms have attempted to address remains. The less populated rural parishes enjoy an electoral advantage over the densely populated urban parishes due to the inequity of the distribution of seats when compared to population.[citation needed]
A report produced under the chairmanship of Sir Cecil Clothier proposed a range of administrative reforms aimed at improving the machinery of government, including ending the distinction between Senators and Deputies, the removal of the Constables from the States and the removal of the Bailiff. Under the proposals, all members of the States would have the title Member of the States of Jersey (MSJ).[18] However, this was rejected.[19] Other aspects of the report, especially concerning the rôle of Connétable, met with intense opposition at public meetings in the parishes. The ministerial system has been introduced in an amended form to that proposed by Clothier.
The system of executive government was changed significantly by the States of Jersey Law 2005.[20]
States Chamber
The States sat in the Royal Court until 1887 when the States Chamber was constructed adjacent to the Royal Court.[21] The chamber is in Jacobean style, with the benches arranged in horseshoe form around the twin seats of the Bailiff and Lieutenant Governor. The Bailiff's seat is raised slightly higher than that of the Lieutenant Governor to demonstrate his precedence.[22]
Senators sit to the left of the Bailiff, then the Connétables, and then the Deputies filling up the benches to the right.
BBC Radio Jersey broadcasts the main States sittings live on their medium wave frequency 1026mW in Jersey, replacing the normal BBC Radio Jersey output which is a straight mirror of the FM output.
The raw feed of the States members talking is provided by the States of Jersey and goes through a desk in the BBC Radio Jersey Studio in the States Chamber where it is mixed by the States Reporter on duty that day.
Broadcasting of the States debates began experimentally on 30 September 1986 and was made a permanent feature on 25 November the same year.
Since December 2005 the States of Jersey have released a complete written record of everything that members say during question time, statements and debates in the States Assembly using Hansard, similar to the UK parliament. These transcriptions are available on the States of Jersey website.
On 15 July 2015 the States Assembly voted 31 in favour and 13 against a proposal that cameras would be installed in the States Chamber in order to provide a live and on-demand video stream through the States Assembly web site. The video feed will also be provided to the media.[23]
Politics of Guernsey take place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic British Crown dependency.
Politics of the Bailiwick of Jersey takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitution.
The Bailiff is the Chief Justice in each of the Channel Island bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey, also serving as president of the legislature and having ceremonial and executive functions. Each bailiwick has possessed its own bailiff since the islands were divided into two jurisdictions in the 13th century. The Bailiffs and Deputy Bailiffs are appointed by The Crown,, and may hold office until retirement age.
The title Bailiff of Guernsey has been used since at least the 13th century and indicated the leading citizen of Guernsey.
Elections in Jersey take place for the Assembly of the States of Jersey and at parish-level. Various parties have been formed over the years in Jersey, but few candidates stand for election affiliated to any political party. All elections in Jersey use the First-past-the-post voting system. In 2008, the voting age was reduced to 16 years.
The jurats are lay people in Guernsey and Jersey who act as judges of fact rather than law, though they preside over land conveyances and liquor licensing. In Alderney, however, the jurats are judges of both fact and law in both civil and criminal matters.
The Jersey Democratic Alliance was a political party in Jersey. JDA candidates contested general elections in 2005 and 2008 but announced in August 2011 that it would not be fielding candidates in the October 2011 elections.
Sir Philip Martin Bailhache, KBE is a Jersey politician and lawyer. He was elected as a Senator in the States of Jersey in October 2011 and serves as an Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister. He previously held elected office as Deputy of Grouville 1972-1975. Between 1975 and 2009, he successively held office as Solicitor General, Attorney General, Deputy Bailiff and Bailiff of Jersey.
Stuart Syvret is a political activist in Jersey. He held elected office as a member of the States of Jersey assembly from 1990 to 2010. From 1999 to 2007, Svyret had executive responsibilities first as President of the Health and Social Services Committee and, after the 2005 constitutional reforms, as Minister for Health and Social Services in the Council of Ministers. He was dismissed from ministerial office in September 2007 and returned to the backbenches until he was disqualified from membership of the States in April 2010 due to his absence from the island. He has been involved in a series of legal proceedings, as a defendant in a criminal prosecution in Jersey and as a claimant in judicial review and civil claims in Jersey and London.
Guy de Faye is a former news presenter, and former member of the States of Jersey who was first elected in 2002 as Deputy, and re-elected in 2005.
A Parish Assembly in Jersey is the decision-making body of local government, comprising ratepayers and electors of the parish.
Simon Crowcroft is a Jersey politician, Connétable of St Helier, and former teacher. He has been an elected member of the States of Jersey since 1996.
Geoff Southern is a Jersey politician, and former teacher. He has been a deputy in the States of Jersey since winning a by-election, on 15 February 2002, and has chaired two scrutiny panels.
The Jersey general election, 2008 was a series of elections that were taking place in two stages in October and November 2008 in Jersey.
The Law of Jersey has been influenced by several different legal traditions, in particular Norman customary law, English common law and modern French civil law. The Bailiwick of Jersey is a separate jurisdiction from that of the United Kingdom, and is also distinct from that of the other Channel Islands such as Guernsey, although they do share some historical developments. Jersey's legal system is 'mixed' or 'pluralistic', and sources of law are in French and English languages, although since the 1950s the main working language of the legal system is English.
The Courts of Jersey are responsible for the administration of justice in the Bailiwick of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands. They apply the law of the Island, which is a mixture of customary law and legislation passed by the legislature, the States Assembly.
The Council of Ministers is the collective decision-making body of the Government of Jersey. The council co-ordinates policies and administration, especially policy affecting two or more ministers, prioritises executive and legislative proposals, and presents a "Strategic Plan for Jersey" for approval by the States Assembly.
The judiciary of Jersey is a branch of the government of Jersey that interprets and applies the laws of Jersey, to ensure equal justice under law, and to provide a mechanism for dispute resolution. The Bailiff of Jersey is the President of the Royal Court. Individual trials are heard by the Bailiff, the Deputy Bailiff or a Commissioner. The Master of the Royal Court deals with some preliminary matters in civil cases. The Court is supported by the Judicial Greffier who acts as the Registrar. In addition to the judge, the Royal Court includes a number of volunteer Jurats. The Jurats decide issues of fact in criminal and civil trials, hand down sentences in criminal trials and award damages in civil trials. All judges in Jersey are bound by a code of conduct, introduced in 2007, which requires them to "uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary and perform their duties with competence, diligence and dedication".
↑ Morris, P.E. (2008). "The new systems of government in the Channel Islands". Public Law. London: Sweet and Maxwell. [2008] (Autumn): 430. ISSN0033-3565.
↑ Balleine's History of Jersey, Marguerite Syvret and Joan Stevens (1998) ISBN1-86077-065-7
↑ Falle, Raymond (1986). "1". A Brief History of the States of Jersey and the States Chamber. St Helier, Jersey: States' Greffe. p.1.|access-date= requires |url= (help)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
