Jersey Lottery funds used for charities (FOI)

Request

Since the establishment of the Jersey Lottery in, I believe 1963, the revenue was used to fund the establishment of Fort Regent.

At what date was this stopped and the distribution broadened to cover general charities in Jersey please?

Since the establishment of the combined C I Lottery in 1975 what has been the annual 'profit' to the Government of Jersey?

Is there currently any provision for a share of the above 'profits' to be used to fund any aspect of Fort Regent?

Response

The Government of Jersey’s retention policies do not require all records to be retained for the period in question, therefore Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 partially applies.

The report accompanying Proposition P.11/2001confirms on page 3 that

 “from the first Jersey Lottery Draw in August 1966 until the end of 1992, over £10 million was raised and transferred to the “Fort Regent Fund” to pay off the capital expenditure on the Gloucester Hall, etc.”.

Please see the link below: 

Proposition P.11/2001.pdf (statesassembly.gov.je)

This same Proposition also changed the distribution arrangements to the Association of Jersey Charities and extended these arrangements to include the Jersey Community Foundation. Please see the following link: 

CI Lottery: Allocation of 2019 Proceeds P.141/2020.pdf (statesassembly.gov.je)

Details of the annual allocation of profits from 2002 onwards can be found in Propositions lodged with the States Assembly:

www.statesassembly.gov.je. 

Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011has been applied. 

Further information may also be available from the Association of Jersey Charities who can be contacted as follows: 

Contact (jerseycharities.org)

There are no current plans to directly distribute a share of the profits towards any aspect of Fort Regent.

Articles applied 

Article 3 - Meaning of “information held by a public authority”

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a)     it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b)     it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.