'I want to see islanders become homeowners': Jersey's Chief Minister lays out New Year goals

• Deputy Kristina Moore looks ahead to 2023 and tells ITV Channel presenter Jonathan Wills about her top priorities

After Jersey faced several tragedies at the end of 2022, Chief Minister Deputy Kristina Moore is looking ahead to the next 12 months with optimism.

Deputy Moore sat down with ITV Channel TV to set out her new year resolutions for the island.

Top of the Chief Minister's list is the housing crisis.

Deputy Moore said: "Housing is at the root of many of the problems that islanders face."

Some property owners are buying multiple sites and which is putting pressure on the rental market, forces prices up. But Deputy Moore has acknowledged this problem and wants to ease the strain.

"We started to make our feelings known on that very point in the government plan, actually, by adding the additional stamp duty of 3% for people who are purchasing properties for investment and buy to let purposes," she said.

"We want to see individual people becoming homeowners."

Recycling is also on the agenda, with plans to have islanders being more eco-friendly.

Deputy Moore said: "It really is something that we need to understand more why islanders don't want to recycle so much in Jersey.

"What I did commit to at the beginning of this term of office was moving towards a zero waste, more of a circular economy model and I think that that's really important thing that we do because we need to be good global citizens as well as caring for our beautiful island environment."

One of the top wishes for the Chief Minister is that islanders "could help her out and help us see that the recycling rate change" which could be as simple as "efforts just to put a plastic bottle in the right bin".

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