SPECIAL REPORT: COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTS' RESPONSES TO COVID-19
DIGITAL INNOVATION HELPS JERSEY’S PARLIAMENT TO SIT VIRTUALLY One of the smallest Parliaments in the Commonwealth has shown that it is possible for Parliamentarians and parliamentary staff to hold debates and votes without all being in the same place at the same time during the global COVID19 pandemic. The States Assembly, the Parliament of the Channel Island of Jersey, has 49 Parliamentarians and in April, it sat for the first time in its history in ‘virtual’ form, with only the Presiding Officer (Bailiff) and any Government Minister due to make key statements attending in person, and the remainder joining via video or telephone link. The measures meant that all involved could heed the ‘stay at home’ and ‘social distancing’ rules which are similar to those in force in many other jurisdictions in the Commonwealth. The virtual sitting required the creation of a number of TV-show style networks of video and audio feeds to allow debates and votes to happen on one channel, with a director switching between the different feeds to ensure it was easy to follow. A second private channel was used by Parliamentarians to communicate their intentions to speak to the Presiding Officer. Members of the public who may have ordinarily watched from the gallery in the Parliament building in Jersey’s capital, St Helier, were able to watch online instead. The project was masterminded by Digital Jersey, the government-backed economic development agency and industry association dedicated to the growth of the digital sector. Digital Jersey CEO, Tony Moretta said: “This was a huge logistical challenge, not least in ensuring the less tech-savvy among the island’s Parliamentarians were able to join the sitting and participate effectively. We staged a full technical rehearsal on the night before the sitting of Parliament, and I am pleased to say it was business as usual, with ‘digital democracy’ ensuring vital laws could be passed even in the middle of a health crisis.” Jersey is the one of most connected islands in the world, with full-fibre gigabit connections to every home and business offering some of the fastest average internet speeds on the planet. Mark Egan, States Greffier, Parliament’s Chief Clerk and CPA Jersey Branch Secretary said: “Digital Jersey were essential in helping us hold our virtual sitting successfully, while live-streaming proceedings to the island. We have adapted our procedures to ensure that the Assembly can carry on in virtual form for as long as necessary, debating the exceptional legislation proposed by the government and holding Ministers to account for their decisions.”
Senator Lyndon Farnham, Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Culture and Sport, said: “The COVID-19 measures mean we cannot physically meet in the usual way in our historic States Chamber but the Digital Jersey team have helped to ensure that the States Assembly can continue to carry out its parliamentary duties. It is essential, particularly in times of emergency, that the democratic process continues, and I am pleased we have been able to find an effective digital solution that other jurisdictions can benefit from.” Digital Jersey is the government-backed economic development agency and industry association dedicated to the growth of the digital sector. For further information about Digital Jersey please visit www.digital.je/connected-jersey.
Above: A virtual sitting of the Jersey States Assembly takes place with the Bailiff of Jersey (Presiding Officer) presiding assisted by the Greffier of the States (Clerk) and other parliamentary staff.
The Parliamentarian | 2020: Issue Two | 100 years of publishing 1920-2020 | 111
