Red diagonal cross on white background, with the arms of Jersey surmounted by the Plantagenet Crown in upper quadrant
Head of State The Queen is Head of State and is represented in the island by H.E.The Lieutenant Governor. The Bailiff as President of the States, is the civic head of the island.
Standing in between the Bailiff and H.E. The Lt Governor, when the States meet, is the Mace which was presented to the Bailiff of Jersey by King Charles II in 1663 in gratitude for the hospitality he received from islanders during his years in exile. The Mace is carried before the Bailiff as he enters and leaves the Chamber at meetings of the States and during each sitting it is placed upright in front of his seat. In December 2005 a new system of government was established in Jersey.
The old committee system was abolished and replaced by a new Council of Ministers working alongside Scrutiny Panels. The Assembly of the States of Jersey consists of 53 elected, and four non-elected, Members. The elected Members are 12 Senators serving for six years and elected by the whole island; 12 Connétables, representing the 12 administrative parishes of the island; 29 Deputies, elected by district, sometimes singly and sometimes in two-, three- or four-Member districts according to population. The non- elected Members are the Bailiff (President of the Assembly), the Attorney General and Solicitor General, all of whom are Crown appointees, and the Dean of Jersey representing the established church. These Members have a right of speech but not vote.
Elections
Every three years, elections for six of the 12 Senators take place in October and for 29 Deputies in November. Elections for Connétable take place three years after the date of the previous appointment, although from 2011 they will all be held together on the same day as the elections for Senators. The last Senators and Deputies elections were in 2005.
The Executive Executive functions are discharged in part by the States Assembly but mostly by Ministers whose actions are scrutinized by five Scrutiny Panels and the Pubic Accounts Committee.
The Judiciary The Bailiff is President of the Royal Court, the island's superior court, from which appeals lie to the Jersey Court of Appeal (members appointed by the Crown) and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
Legal System Based on Norman customary law for property, succession, obligations and crime and influenced in other areas by English common law. The island's original police force, an honorary system, is parish-based and now functions in tandem with the States of Jersey Police Force (a uniformed and salaried service). The island is divided into 12 administrative parishes, which are also the
Municipal
Government Area
Population Economy
Climate Language
ecclesiastical parishes. Parishes are responsible for the up-keep of by-roads, some street lighting, refuse collection, the issue of various licences and for recommendations regarding the granting of liquor licences.
45 square miles (118 sq. km); situated 14 miles off the northwest coast of France and 85 miles from the south coast of England. 89,300 (year-end 2006)
The island's economy has changed markedly since the early 1960s from a traditional base of agriculture and tourism. For more than a decade, the financial services industry has accounted for about half of all economic activity in the island; the sector represented 52 per cent of total Gross Value Added (GVA) in 2006.
Jersey is the most southerly of the British Isles with one of the best sunshine records. It is warmed by the Gulf Stream and sheltered by the neighbouring Cherbourg peninsular. Summer temperatures average 20oC often tempered by sea breezes.
The official language is English. French remains an official language of the courts and the States, but business is normally conducted in English. Jersey is a cosmopolitan island and is host to a large population of Portuguese and Polish-speaking nationals who make a sizeable contribution to the economy of the island. The native language, Jérriais, similar to Norman French, is spoken in parts of the island and it is now taught in Jersey's primary and secondary schools.
Currency Time
Sterling; but Jersey issues its own coins and notes. As the United Kingdom, in summer one hour ahead of GMT (known as British Summer Time - BST).