03/06/2014 BBC Channel Islands News

Joe Wilson repopts. That's

Pregnant women in Jersey cotld get more maternity leave from their jobs

if a proposed change in the law gets government approval.

But one politician says the island is lagging behind

other jurisdictions in looking after expectant mothers

Pregnancy can be an anxious time, but women in Jersey have an added

financial worry as there is no legal obligation for employers to pay them

for their time off work. Under new proposals, they would get 2`mac

weeksmulti`mac wages. After giving birth, among needs time to

recuperate and regroup, as well as bonding with their child and

establishing breast`feeding if they choose to breast`feed. But that is

what will happen as the Sochal Security Department wants to bring

in a law bringing in two wedks paid leave and 16 weeks unpaid ldave A

more generous scheme was proposed for 26 weeks paid leave and a

guaranteed job to go back to. When we look at how other countrhes

compare, we have taken a long time to adopt maternity leave, wd are not

very generous in terms of p`id maternity leave. We can afford to do

better. The concern I have hs that this leave would be available to

everybody without having served any length of service with their

employer. That puts a lot of stress on employers. This copy shop owner

has been following the debate closely, and says although Social

Security would foot the bill for maternity pay, there will bd cost

implications for businesses. Not only are you having to keep the job

open for individuals to stax on you have to train individuals to carry

on doing that job, and employing somebody else. Both proposals will

be debated next month. The detail of the eventual legislation will be the

key to balancing the rights of women and the needs of the island's

businesses. Jersey's Planning and Environment

Minister says he's unable to support a new strategy passed by

his states colleagues today. The government has backed ndw plans

to spend ?75 million on replacing the sewage treatment plant

at Bellozanne, improving the sewage network and helphng

households connect to main drains. Deputy Duhamel says it doesn't take

note of the green policies After nearly three decades of

trading, Quayside in Guernsdy has announced it's closing. The home and

leisure store in St Sampson's will shut next January. 25 lembers

of staff will lose their jobs. Jersey's Treasury has confirmed

it's in the process of borrowing ?250 million to invest in

social housing. The money will be invested

in affordable homes, and will be paid off

over the next 40 years An apprenticeship scheme for young

aspiring fishermen in Guernsey has been labelled at total joke by some

local fishermen. The scheme was launched in September, but so far

only two islanders are taking part. The fish quay in St Peter Port

is the heart of Guernsey's fishing industry,

a particularly challenging hndustry. Buying a boat, rising fuel costs

and falling fish prices The government's trying to help

by offering under`25s the opportunity to run a small boat for

three years as an apprenticdship, before investing in a full licence.

So far only one person has been granted a licence

and one more has applied. The fisherman I have spoken to today

did not want to go on camer` with their thoughts. Some have s`id that

they feel the apprenticeship scheme is not working.

The Commerce and Employment Department says

the scheme's focused on quality rather than quantity

This scheme is designed to offer assistance to fisherman who are keen

to pursue a career in fisherman dash`mac fishing. Rather th`n the

discourages many entrants as possible.

Most of these boats are owndd by men who've fished for decades.

It's now up to younger generations to decide

if a career at sea is really one for them.

100 years after the First World War, a campaign's begun to recognise the

involvement of the Channel Hslands. The names of the thousands of men

who fought are included on monuments around Europe,

but there's no mark for the overall contribution islanddrs made.

It was described as the war to end all wars.

Thousands of men from the Channel Islands

fought for the Allies against the German Empire.

Many didn't come home. Thosd that died are remembered at the hsland's

cenotaphs as well as on varhous larger monuments in France.

But there is no specific melorial dedicated to the overall

contribution the Channel Islands made anywhere in Europe.

Historian Ian witnessed this when he wrote the first ever book

on the Channel Islands' involvement in the Great War.

Canada and Australia and New Zealand have very large memorials

commemorating the sacrifices and the deeds of their soldiers. Thd

exception is Jersey and Guernsey. Nowhere in France or Belgiul can you

find a monument that commemorates the acts of Jersey and Guernsey

soldiers. But now the Vice`Chairman of the

Jersey branch of the British Legion Is behind efforts to change that. We

need to bring together a te`m, we need to find out whether or not we

can build a memorial on French soil. We have to find out who is going to

fund it and how it is going to be funded. There are no full lot of

things to do, but hopefully we can start the ball rolling and find a

way of achieving something over the centenary period.

If this memorial goes ahead, our soldiers who risked thehr lives

won't be just remembered in the islands, but also where thex fought.

That is the news tonight. Ndwsnight is getting under way over on BBC Two

investigating child prostitttes being trafficked in the shadow of

the Brazil World Cup. I will leave you with the weather forecast.

Good evening. We have got r`in around tonight across the islands

that will clear as we move hnto the afternoon, even with some stnshine.

A short list band dash`mac short lived band of wet weather. Loderate

to heavy bursts of rain. Wind also changing direction, becoming

westerly and eventually north`westerly first thing tomorrow

morning. 10 degrees the minhmum temperature. Wet at first tomorrow

morning, but it moves through fairly steadily, by lunchtime cert`inly

much brighter with sunny spdlls a few showers by the afternoon. Top

temperature of 15, possibly even 16 degrees. A brisk north`west breeze.

Fine and dry for the rest of the week. The temperatures get higher

and higher, possibly as high as 21, 22 idle weekend. In a minutd, full

forecast for the weekend, btt from us good night.

outlook, we (ave so-e thun$erstgr-s this Saturday.

Interest ring aggression of weather for the rest of this week which

could end up as a crescendo on Saturday involving heavy rain. Rain

in the shorter term forecast, heading in from the south. It is

knocking on the door already and will make a miserable day tomorrow.

Rain pushing up Rahm Northern France and get into southern part of

England and Wales by the end of the night. Showers ahead of that. A

relatively mild night except in the northern half of Scotland.

Temperatures will get down into single figures. But that is the area

that ends up with a dry start tomorrow. Across most of the

country, it is a mass of rain. It will ebb and flow, but there will be

heavy bursts