Guernsey Strengthens Relationship With UK

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

11 October 2010

Guernsey’s Chief Minister, Lyndon Trott has reported back after two days of briefings with influential figures in the UK government at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham on October 3-6.

In a statement following his arrival back in Guernsey, the Chief Minister said he had met with Treasury Minister David Gauke, where subjects discussed included the review of Guernsey's corporate tax regime and other financial and business issues of mutual importance.

The Chief Minister also briefed the Foreign Office's Europe Minister David Lidington, where they discussed Guernsey and the UK's relationships with the European Union. The Chief Minister discussed the establishment of the Channel Islands office in Brussels, a development welcomed by the Lidington.

Trott said of his visit: "We have spent a good deal of time building strong relationships with the new government. My meetings here have strengthened and broadened those relationships, and will help ensure a continued effective working relationships between our two governments."

The Chief Minister was also present at Chancellor George Osborne's keynote address on Monday. He commented: "Having met the Treasury team on a number of occasions, I was extremely interested to hear their plans for making the UK economy more sustainable. Our economic links with the UK remain essential to our own economic success."

The Chief Minister also met the UK government's Communities Secretary Eric Pickles, who is driving through many of the UK government's reforms, and Northern Ireland Secretary Owen Paterson, who visited Guernsey in June as part of the British Irish Council Summit. He also met with members of the Justice, Treasury and Foreign Affairs Select Committees, and with Lord Digby Jones, a former minister who remains a highly influential figure in UK business and government.

"It has been an extremely successful trip to the Conference. Guernsey's voice continues to be heard on issues that are important to us,” concluded Trott.

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