Jersey: exercising executive power in a non-party system

Abstract

Four features of Jersey's system of government may be distinguished: the conflation of legislative and executive powers in a single institution, the States; the high degree of internal autonomy secured by what is nominally a Crown dependency; the absence of political parties or permanent factions; and the tenacity of tradition. This article reviews the evolution of the Island's governing institutions under the immediate influence of local authorities and the distant but occasionally decisive influence of developments in Britain. It identifies the source of institutional stress in the dilemmas posed by Jersey's development as a leading purveyor of financial services. The article demonstrates the tension in the minds of voters, politicians and officials between tenacious conventions and growing pressures for change and adaptation. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.