Whilst meetings of the States Assembly represent the most important and significant part of a States Members role – and the membership of which is compulsory – for most States' Members they only take up small proportion of their time, and a larger proportion is spent contributing to Committee work.
Committees are effectively agents of the States of Alderney, responsible for the majority of policy making, and regulatory and public service functions, and are accountable to the States of Alderney.
States’ Committees develop and advise the States on policy, oversee operational functions for which the States, enactments or legislation have made them responsible, and review performance and budgets with a view to securing improved outcomes for the community.
The mandates and operational functions of the Committees are set out here.
The role of a Committee Chair carries additional responsibilities that can be time-consuming, although this can vary between Chairs of different Committees. In practice, it is the Chairs of Committees who deal with media enquiries and are the primary political contact point to explain the decisions of their Committees.
Whilst each Committee will of course focus on the matters covered by its mandate, it is also very important to look to the wider strategic direction and priorities agreed by the States, which often involves a high degree of cross-Committee working.
In common with all democratic government systems, the States of Alderney cannot operate effectively without good teamwork between States' Members and Civil Servants.
A strong professional and non-political Civil Service plays a vital role in preparing policy letters and other reports for consideration and discussion by Committees. Both States' Members and Civil Servants have their roles to play, and must work cooperatively within those roles to enable the public sector to devise, implement and operate services for the benefit of the community.