Chief minister 'disappointed' over ferry links
BBCJersey's chief minister says he "remains disappointed" with a ferry firm regarding the provision of inter-island links.
Deputy Lyndon Farnham said that, while DFDS had made improvements since taking over the island's passenger and freight services, "they're still not quite there yet".
The Danish company was handed a 20-year contract in December 2024 to provide services between Jersey, the UK and France, before taking over the routes in March 2025.
DFDS said it was "committed to providing reliable and resilient ferry services for Jersey and the wider Channel Islands" and it would "continue to work constructively with" Jersey and Guernsey's governments.
Last August, Farnham criticised DFDS's service for the island, saying it had "fallen short" of what was promised and he demanded an "improved delivery".
Speaking on BBC Radio Jersey on Monday, Farnham admitted pressure needed to be kept on the company and its operations.
"For example, I'd like DFDS to speed up the boat to St Malo and just try a bit harder to work with Brittany Ferries to provide more comprehensive inter-island links.
Farnham also expressed dissatisfaction with the latter company, which Guernsey chose to run its sea links at the same time Jersey picked DFDS.
It comes after a number of clubs slammed the lack of a regular service between the two islands as "devastating" for various shows and events.
"It's important people can travel with their cars to sporting fixtures and so forth, and that's something we are continuing to push them on," said Farnham.
He added: "And I know my counterpart, the chief minister of Guernsey, is keen to develop those links too.
"We just need to keep the pressure on the ferry companies and there are conversations going on at the moment.
"I'm confident we are going to see improvements."
The advent of DFDS meant the end of Condor Ferries' 60-year history with the island.
Accounts published in 2024 showed the firm had made loses of £1.5m in the year ending March 2023.
Calling the job of running a ferry service "hugely challenging", Farnham said people needed to be "realistic" about having "a sustainable ferry service into the future, one that can afford to reinvest in its ships and give us a better service".
He added that he hoped the difficulties of the situation could be "worked out" and "a bit more positive sort of approach" taken towards it.
A Brittany Ferries' spokesperson said: "We have complied with the terms of our contract by operating a weekly service to Jersey since April of last year.
"We have also scheduled additional departures to support major events, including the Muratti and the Guernsey Rally in 2026."
Adding that the company "continues to work constructively" and "explore opportunities for improvement", they blamed any failings regarding inter-island connectivity on the "lack of such a service provision in DFDS's concession agreement".
"Increasing the frequency of our inter-island services is a question probably best considered after Jersey and our competitor pull their socks up and launch the first inter-island service of its own," said the spokesperson.
DFDS said it was "very aware that inter-island connectivity is an important issue for islanders and one we want to support", but "services must be sustainable if they are to endure and if operators are to continue investing in vessels, safety and service quality".
It said: "Running loss-making routes on a routine basis is not a viable long-term solution for passengers, freight customers or the islands' economies" and it had "trialled inter-island services in good faith".
It added: "DFDS remains open to exploring practical and commercially realistic options for inter-island services, including dialogue with other operators where appropriate.
"Any such arrangements must be deliverable, safe and financially sustainable, rather than symbolic."
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