The draft Bridging Island Plan was published and lodged au Greffe on 19 April 2021. This marked the start of a 12-week public consultation, and the first opportunity for States Members to lodge amendments to the draft Plan. 

The Minister for the Environment has now published the draft Bridging Island Plan: Post-consultation report, which responds to all public comments received, and all States Member Amendments. 

The report has six parts:

Part 1 and 2: Introduction and consultation summary: provides an overview of the Bridging Island Plan process and an overview of the consultation process, including a summary of the issues raised by the public in the 12-week consultation.

Part 3: Minister’s statement responses: 67 individual reports compiled by the Minister for the Environment on key or complex issues raised through the consultation. Each statement response provides a recommendation as to what the Minister feels the inspector might wish to consider in the examination in public.

Part 4: Summary of consultation responses: provides a breakdown of representations made to the consultation by chapter, and where possible, is grouped by relevant policy or theme. Comments have been provided by the Minister in relation to the points made, which may be unique comments, or may refer to a relevant statement response (Part 3).

Part 5: Summary of States Member amendments: presented in a similar format to Part 4, Part 5 provides a schedule of States Member amendments which were proposed during the initial representations period. The schedule indicates what position the Minister is minded to take on each proposed amendment, whilst also pointing to the relevant statement response (Part 3). 

Part 6: Minister’s proposed modifications schedule: Part 6 is presented in a similar format to Parts 4 and 5. It provides a summary of amendments which are highlighted as being either ‘minor’; or ‘substantive’. Only the Minister’s own proposed amendments are included in this schedule and it does not include potential changes where the Minister has indicated support for amendments proposed by other States Members.

Corrigendum: sets out a response to a limited number of issues that have come to light where they were not addressed in any part of the Minister for the Environment’s consultation response (Parts 1 to 6).

To view each Part of the draft Bridging Island Plan: Post-consultation report:

• Part 1 and 2: Introduction and consultation summary
• Part 3: Minister’s statement responses
  
• Part 4: Summary of consultation responses
  
• Part 5: Summary of States Member amendments
  
• Part 6: Minister’s proposed modifications schedule
• Corrigendum

Each Part of the report (excluding Part 5) includes an interactive contents page: when viewing the Part’s in PDF, click on any heading in the contents page to navigate to that section of the report. Full draft Bridging Island Plan: Post-consultation report single document (large file of 59 MB)

Updates since publication

Main matters arising from the draft Bridging Island Plan consultation

• Spatial strategy
• Housing supply
• Allocated housing sites
• Housing policy framework
• Supply of minerals
• Coastal National Park
• Marine Park and marine biodiversity
• Managing emissions
• Economic development
• Our Hospital
• St Brelade’s Bay

What is next in the Island Plan process?

It is at this point in the programme, following the Minister for the Environment’s publication of the post-consultation report, that the examination in public begins and the appointed inspectors take control of the programme. 

The examination in public (EiP) is an important part of the process to develop an Island Plan. The independent planning inspectors will hear the views of islanders who have raised issues about the draft plan, and ensure the draft Bridging Island Plan is adequate and meets the requirements of the law. 

Information on the examination in public

Following the examination in public, the Minister for the Environment will receive and publish a report from the independent planning inspectors which outlines their review and examination of the plan, including recommendations for the Minister to consider. At this stage, both the Minister and States Members can lodge further amendments. The draft Bridging Island Plan is scheduled to be debated in the States Assembly in Spring 2022.  

The draft Bridging Island Plan: post-consultation report is a large document (at over 900 pages, nearly 600 of which are in A3 format) and is best accessed online. A limited number of reference copies are available in print, at the Jersey Public Library in Halkett Place and the States Information Centre at Morier House.