Vote for chief minister a 'bonkers idea' - deputy

A deputy has labelled suggestions Guernsey's chief minister should be selected through an island-wide vote as "bonkers" if it were introduced without other electoral changes.

Deputy Aidan Matthews questioned how one person could be elected to lead so many independent deputies with different views.

It comes after a Jersey deputy submitted a proposal to change how the island selected its chief minister with a debate scheduled for 13 May at the earliest.

But Deputy Sasha Kazantseva-Miller said the public vote idea could also work in Guernsey: "From a practical perspective it is something we could bring in quite easily."

A report accompanying the proposal said the change could "boost public engagement" in the elections.

It said it could offer a "greater level of transparency" regarding the future leadership of the island.

Currently the chief ministers in Jersey and Guernsey are not directly elected by the electorate but by the elected deputies.

Matthews said considerations would need to be made about switching to a US-style presidential system of government if a similar proposition came to fruition in Guernsey.

"I think if it were introduced immediately in our system it would be bonkers.

"You would have to have a bit of thought about how you were going to introduce something like that.

"For example, a full presidential system as they have in the United States, where you elect a president, vice-president and they pick their cabinet."

He added: "I'm standing as an independent, for example, and most candidates are standing as an independent.

"If you have a lot of people standing as independents how do you elect someone to lead all these different views."

Discussing the idea, Kazantseva-Miller said: "I felt it should be something we should consider but it would have implications.

"From a practical perspective it is something we could bring in quite easily because it would just involve a separate cross to say you want this person to be your chief minister.

"In terms of what happens after the election that's when it becomes a little more difficult."

She said decisions would need to be made over how presidents were elected and whether that would still be up to the assembly.

But Kazantseva-Miller said: "We could start making steps in that direction."

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