Development of new Public Health Law (FOI)

​​​​Request

​Regarding the development of a new public health law for Jersey to replace the current Loi (1934) sur la Santé Publique, please supply the following information:

A

At what stage is the new health law, as far as recommendations to change it, are concerned?

B

What timeline is envisaged as to its implementation into law?

C

Who will have the final say in passing it into law, a minister or the state's chamber?

D

Will the new law contain any reference to the forced vaccination of Jersey’s population of any kind?

E

Will the new health law give members of the civil service access to our homes by the implementation of this new law, even if we refuse?

F

Where can members obtain a draft copy of the proposed new Health Law 2024?

G

At this moment in time, who is in charge of developing this new health law, and who is overseeing its implementation? The health minister or a separate civil service body?

Response

A

The most recent work undertaken was the public consultation in 2021. Information on the consultation and the feedback report response can be found at via the following link:

 Public Health law consultation (gov.je) ​

B

As per the published Ministerial Plans, 2024 will see the continued development of a potential new public health law, for debate in 2025, that will provide proportionate measures to support the control of infectious diseases, threats and other hazards, and will support government to address health inequalities. Please see page 36 in the following link:

Ministerial Plans 2024 to 27.pdf (gov.je)3.

C

The draft Law will be debated by the States Assembly.

D

Information is currently not held, and Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies. As the development of the potential new public health law is in the early stages, the granular detail has not been finalised.

E

Please see response to question 4 above.

F

Once the Law has been drafted, it will be published on the States Assembly website when it is lodged for debate within the States Assembly.

G

The development of the law sits within the Strategic Policy, Planning and Performance department. At this stage no information is held as to who will oversee its implementation and Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

Article 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.​