The chief minister of Guernsey has welcomed support from European parliamentarians and the European Commission for the “positive contribution” the island makes to the European economy.
Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq who, along with Jersey’s chief minister Ian Gorst, met with members of parliament from the UK, Germany, Ireland, France, Luxembourg, Denmark and Portugal to discuss the contribution that Guernsey’s finance sector makes to the EU's economy and the jobs that it supports.
Le Tocq said: “The Channel Islands's funds sector is a conduit for around €200 billion of inward investment into Europe.”
“We are an important economic partner of the EU, and that is the message that we have been delivering in Brussels—that continued access to European capital markets for the Channel Islands is good for the EU.”
Gorst added: “In our meeting with the chair of the Tax Committee, Alain Lamassoure, we were able to offer our expertise and input into the work that they are doing over the next few months on tax transparency.”
“Our meetings with Luxembourg’s and the Netherlands's permanent representatives to the EU also means that we have a growing understanding of the emerging priorities of the next two EU presidencies, and that they have an understanding of areas where we can offer input."
The chief ministers also met with representatives from Scotland, the City of London, Andorra, the Faroe Islands, Gibraltar and the Isle of Man, among others at a briefing event organised by the Channel Islands Brussels Office.
