Almost 90% of those responding in Alderney’s Island Plan survey want to make renewable energy a top priority as the Island makes plans for its future.
As Civil Servants and elected Members collate the 458 responses to the survey – a large number of returns for a population survey of this nature – early indications are that developing renewable energy resources to reduce dependence on fossil fuels is a top priority.
Hard on the heels of renewable energy is a clear indication that Alderney also wants its leaders to develop a meaningful housing policy to make the island more attractive to economically active adults as well as looking after those who are struggling to find a home for their family and those who want to continue to live independently but with some support.
And those responding on the community theme also call for a strategy that delivers improved primary health care, sports facilities, mental health services and provision for an ageing population.
As expected, Islanders also want to identify the key drivers that attract new business to the island and implement change – whether legal, tax, digital and information resources – to encourage inward investment.
Preserving the Island’s heritage sites and changing the way the Island’s government works also brought a strong response.
The Policy & Finance Committee (P&F) has considered a report on the initial findings from the Plan’s lead author, P&F Deputy Chair Ian Carter, and will discuss the full collated findings in December before full proposals are put to the full States in January for open debate.
This is a month later than originally planned but the response has been such that civil servants needed more time to collate and systematically analyse the results and the extremely large number of comments that were made.
Once collated, the full results will be published and the States will spell out what it considers to be achievable objectives for the next few years for debate and ratification in January.
The survey, covering six key themes of the economy, energy, connectivity, community development, the environment and governance, went out to public consultation in mid-October.
Islanders including students, parents, people of working age, businesses and older people were asked to help prioritise goals for a realistic and achievable plan.
Among those goals for consideration were the introduction of clean and green energy, reducing energy costs, attracting business investment, increasing the resilience of air and sea transport, improving the diversity, health and wellbeing of the Island’s population, housing provision, developing community facilities, protecting natural habitats and heritage sites, and improving the efficiency, transparency and scrutiny of the Island’s government.
In addition to prioritising key projects listed by a Working Group of States Members, Islanders were also invited to submit their own ideas that could contribute to Alderney’s future prosperity.
