Senator Gorst's Statement on Ukraine (FOI)

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Request

In a "Statement on Ukraine" made on 1 March 2022, Senator Ian Gorst announced that he had “instructed officials and agencies to establish an operational taskforce to ensure that all relevant agencies … are coordinated in actively identifying and investigating relevant Russian assets in Jersey.”

It has been confirmed that the instruction was a “verbal direction to officers”.

Operational taskforce instructions (FOI)​

Please can you provide the following information:

1

To which person(s) was the instruction (direction) provided. For all such persons please provide the following information: (a) name; (b) department and/or agency (for example, External Relations, Law Officers’ Department, ECCU, States of Jersey Police etc.); (c) job title.

2

When and how the instruction (direction) was provided to each person referred to at 1. above. For example: on 28 February 2022, in a meeting held at Broad Street at 11am; or, on 1 March 2022, in a telephone conversation.

3

Copies of any notes (whether formal or informal) or other documents (including, without limitation, emails) recording (in whole or in part) the instruction (direction) or any aspect thereof.

Response

In the response to Freedom of Information request linked above issued on 4 October 2024, it was confirmed that no written record of the verbal instruction referenced in question one is held by the Government of Jersey. Therefore, the Government of Jersey does not hold the requested information requested in questions one - three. 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.​