Weekly round-up: Stories you may have missed

1 February 2026

There are 10,547 dogs in Jersey as of 2025, a report found

BBC Two dogs looking up standing on gravel on a sunny day. — There are 10,547 dogs in Jersey as of 2025, a report found

The death of BBC Radio presenter John Randall and a 25% increase in the number of dogs in Jersey have been among the headlines this week.

Here's our round-up of some of the other Channel Islands stories you may have missed.

Guernsey Air Display to keep evening slot for 2026

The organisers of Guernsey Air Display said it would return as an evening show in 2026

Matt Judge/BBC Aircraft with sparks flying from its wings and 2025 and a heart lit up under one wing — The organisers of Guernsey Air Display said it would return as an evening show in 2026

Organisers of an annual air display in Guernsey said it would remain as a "twilight spectacle" for the second year in a row.

Flying display director Barry Neal said a survey conducted at the 2025 display - which was held in the evening unlike previous editions - revealed two-thirds of visitors had come to the island purely for the event.

He said visitors also said they would return for future events, which was "fantastic news" for tourism.

Neal said given the positive feedback, organisers had decided to keep the show in the evening slot when it returned on 9 September.

'More work needed' to make parental leave equal for all

Access to parental leave is currently granted on a parent-by-parent basis, not per family

PA Media A pair of baby feet being held in the open palms of its mother. — Access to parental leave is currently granted on a parent-by-parent basis, not per family

Jersey's government needs to do more to ensure all families in Jersey benefit from the island's parental leave system, a scrutiny panel says.

The panel conducted a year-long review to look at whether amendments to Jersey's Employment Law, made in 2018 and 2020, were meeting the needs of modern families and employers.

Panel head, Deputy Louise Doublet, said while the review highlighted many positives, it revealed that single parents were "structurally disadvantaged" by the current system.

Social Security Minister, Deputy Lyndsay Feltham, said she was grateful for the "thorough and detailed report" and would provide a response to its findings and 22 recommendations made in due course.

Parish buys shipyard communal garden for £1

The plan for Allix's Shipyard is to bring it back to a "good state of repair"

Google A picture of Allix's Shipyard. There is a number of plants and a wooden boat pictured in the yard. There is a body of water in the distance. There is two large buildings either side of the yard. — The plan for Allix's Shipyard is to bring it back to a "good state of repair"

The Parish of St Helier has bought a community garden area in a historic former shipyard for £1.

Plans to purchase Allix's Shipyard were unanimously approved last year, the aim being to bring it back to a "good state of repair".

Situated in Havre des Pas - once a thriving hub of the island's maritime industry dating back to the 1800s - it will now be cordoned off for several weeks while essential improvements are carried out.

Having previously dubbed the site to be of "significant importance", Constable of St Helier, Simon Crowcroft, said he was "delighted" and "looked forward to seeing it restored to its former glory in time for summer".

Zoo rolls out 'world-first' vaccine to protect bats

Bats involved in the trial had daily welfare assessments, the zoo said

Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust A close-up of black bat upside down. Its eyes are brown and the bat is being held. The person is wearing a yellow glove and is wearing a brown jacket. — Bats involved in the trial had daily welfare assessments, the zoo said

A "world-first" vaccine to protect a colony of bats against a fatal infection has been rolled out at Jersey Zoo.

In 2025, 10 Livingstone fruit bats died after an outbreak of the bacteria pasteurella multocida.

Zoological director of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Matt Goetz, previously said it was inherent in the bats' natural microbiome and did not come from outside the zoo.

Channel Islands push back on Russian money claims

The governments of the two biggest Channel Islands have pushed back on claims made by an MP in the UK Parliament that they are not doing enough to tackle Russian money coming through the islands.

Labour MP Lloyd Hatton told the Commons that, since February 2022, more than a quarter of all suspected sanctions breaches were made using intermediary jurisdictions, including Guernsey.

He said: "Time and again we've seen that offshore financial centres like Guernsey and Jersey have been caught up in sanctions evasion, that's simply not acceptable."