H O U S E O F K E Y S O F F I C I A L R E P O R T

R E C O R T Y S O I K O I L Y C H I A R E A S F E E D

P R O C E E D I N G S

D A A L T Y N

HANSARD

Castletown, Tuesday, 14th March 2017

All published Official Reports can be found on the website:

www.tynwald.org.im/business/hansard

Supplementary material provided subsequent to a sitting is also published to the website as a Hansard Appendix. Reports, maps and other documents referred to in the course of debates may be consulted on application to the Tynwald Library or the Clerk of Tynwald’s Office.

Volume 134, No. 15

ISSN 1742-2264

Published by the Office of the Clerk of Tynwald, Legislative Buildings, Finch Road, Douglas, , IM1 3PW. © Court of Tynwald, 2017 , TUESDAY, 14th MARCH 2017

Present:

The Speaker (Hon. J P Watterson) (Rushen); The Chief Minister (Hon. R H Quayle) (Middle); Mr J R Moorhouse and Hon. G D Cregeen (Arbory, Castletown and ); Hon. A L Cannan and Mr T S Baker (Ayre and Michael); Hon. C C Thomas and Mrs C A Corlett (Douglas Central); Miss C L Bettison and Mr C R Robertshaw (Douglas East); Mr G R Peake (Douglas North); Hon. W M Malarkey (Douglas South); Mr M J Perkins and Mrs D H P Caine (Garff); Hon. R K Harmer and Hon. G G Boot (Glenfaba and Peel); Mr W C Shimmins (Middle); Mr R E Callister and Ms J M Edge (Onchan); Dr A J Allinson and Mr L L Hooper (Ramsey); Hon. L D Skelly (Rushen); with Mr R I S Phillips, Secretary of the House.

Business transacted

Leave of absence granted ...... 673 Welcome by the Speaker ...... 673 Order of the Day ...... 674 1. Evidence from Dr Gawne ...... 674 1.1. The introduction of a popularly elected House of Keys in 1867 – Evidence to the House ...... 674 2. Motion ...... 677 2.1. 150th anniversary of introduction of direct elections and ensuing progress for the Isle of Man – Motion carried ...... 677 Thanks and statement by the Speaker ...... 679 The House adjourned at 3.05 p.m...... 680

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House of Keys

The House met at 2.30 p.m. in the , Castletown

[MR SPEAKER in the Chair]

5 The Speaker: Fastyr mie, Hon. Members.

Members: Fastyr, mie, Mr Speaker.

The Speaker: Please be seated.

Leave of absence granted

10 The Speaker: Firstly, to advise Hon. Members that leave of absence has been given to Mr Ashford and Mrs Beecroft.

Welcome by the Speaker

The Speaker: It is easily assumed that because we have the world’s oldest continuous parliament we also have the world’s oldest democracy. Democracy and parliament go hand in hand, but it has not always been so. We are meeting this afternoon to celebrate those first 15 tentative steps on the road to the full democracy we now enjoy. The House of Keys has not formally sat in this building since 26th November 1874. It has witnessed sittings of the last unelected House of Keys and the first sitting of the House of Keys under popular elections, albeit where just 40% of the adult male population had the vote. Today it sees the first House to be elected under equality of representation, being entirely elected from 20 two-seat constituencies. It is therefore a historic day for both our ancient House and this building. I would like to welcome and acknowledge in the gallery former Speakers Mr Rodan and Mr Cringle, and I am delighted to welcome, to give evidence today, Dr Kit Gawne, who is well known for his publication Controversy, which covers the period up to Revestment and its 25 implications, especially for Manx finances.

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Order of the Day

1. EVIDENCE FROM DR GAWNE

1.1. The introduction of a popularly elected House of Keys in 1867 – Evidence to the House

The Speaker: Moving to Item 1 on our Order Paper, I now invite Dr Gawne to give his evidence on the introduction of a popularly elected House of Keys. Dr Gawne.

30 Dr Gawne: Thank you, Mr Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Hon. Members. My talk today is entitled ‘A New Hand to Scour a Rusty Bunch: How the self-elected Members of the House of Keys voted themselves out of office from 1833 through to 1867’. It is very appropriate that we are here in the very building in which the Members of the House of Keys met during most of the period this talk covers. The building stands on the site of 35 the library which was built by Bishop in 1710 and where the Keys were allowed to use the ground floor for their meetings. The old building was replaced on the same site by this one in 1821. With the increasing importance of Douglas, however, which became the Island’s capital in 1869, the Keys moved temporarily to Douglas courthouse and then permanently to the former Bank of Mona building on Prospect Hill in 1881. 40 In 1832 Britain had extended the vote to men who owned or tenanted property worth at least £10 a year and to those who had other specific property qualifications. But the people of the Isle of Man had not one vote to cast in the election of their representatives. The members of the self-elected House of Keys resisted demands to change their establishment. Whenever a vacancy occurred, they nominated two men to the Lieutenant-Governor for his decision as to 45 which one should then be appointed. The ‘Castletown clique’, the disparaging contemporary term used to describe them and their supporters, were seen as land-owning members of a self- perpetuating and self-interested oligarchy and a very powerful force. But, as often is the case, there are two sides to a story. This talk explores the attitudes and influences of some of the Members of the self-elected House of Keys in the lead-up to its 50 dissolution. And running alongside this story there is an interlinked one about the reformers who were prepared to take risks to help achieve what they considered were long-overdue political and fiscal changes. Reform petitions had been raised in the late 1700s, and John Murray – as you know, the fourth Duke of Atholl and Governor of the Isle of Man – had derisively referred to the Keys in 55 1822 as being ‘no more representative of the people of Man than of the people of Peru’. But the call for political reform only started in earnest in 1833 when the teetotal Methodist Robert Fargher launched the liberal and dissenting newspaper the Mona’s Herald and became involved in a persistent and vigorous campaign to bring about a democratically elected House of Keys. From that moment may be dated the beginnings of political and fiscal reform. 60 Fargher called for meetings of the Keys to no longer take place behind closed doors but to be open both to the press and the public and for its Members to be chosen by the vote of the people. His inflammatory ‘letters to the editor’ resulted in a libel action being brought against him in 1844 by George Dumbell, one of the ablest and bitterest opponents of political reform, who was a Member and the Secretary of the House of Keys as well as a banker. 65 Fargher was sentenced to 10 days’ imprisonment in and a fine of £10, which he refused to pay. His supporters paid the fine, and the Mona’s Herald reported that on a triumphal procession back to Douglas:

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Flags were displayed on public houses, shawls and handkerchiefs were hung out at the farm houses, and, in the absence of these, at thatched cottages patriotic old matrons hung out their wearing garments.

Many of the constitutional reform protestors formed committees and associations and sent petitions to the British government throughout the 1830s and 1840s. Nothing came of it until 70 Home Secretary Sir George Grey temporarily subdued the protestors in 1847 by threatening that Britain might annex the Island. In 1853 George Dumbell and William Callister were appointed by their Keys’ colleagues to go to London to meet with Prime Minister William Gladstone, Home Secretary Viscount Palmerston and Financial Secretary to the Treasury James Wilson to express their alarm that the Isle of Man 75 was being included in a British Customs Act. Negotiations were intense but ended in agreement that special clauses would be used distinctly referring to the Island and that a fixed annual amount of money raised by Manx customs duties would be given to Tynwald to use for harbour works. This was in addition to an amount already given since 1843 when Dr John Bowring MP had lobbied on behalf of the Manx people for the return of their money. Since the Revestment 80 Act 1765, Britain had been taking the surplus Manx customs revenue and putting it into its own exchequer with little of it ever coming back to the Island. Towards the end of the discussions, Wilson surprisingly suggested to the two MHKs that the Keys should have control of the surplus customs revenue but only if they were willing to be elected by the people. When Dumbell returned to explain these unexpected suggestions to the 85 Members of the House of Keys, at first they agreed to their own reform, but Wilson’s lack of authority, the Keys general reluctance to move things on and the caution of Lieutenant- Governor Charles Hope prevented an important opportunity to resolve the two conjoined issues. Calls for reform were again raised from a familiar quarter, that of yet another forceful newspaper owner and editor, this time James Brown of the liberal Isle of Man Times. Liverpool- 90 born Brown was a descendant of a slave. Early in 1864 the recently created Douglas Town Commissioners wanted to extend their powers. Amongst the many remarks made about the Commissioners by a Member of the House of Keys was that the most they could be given was control over the donkeys on the shore. The Isle of Man Times declared:

this elicited marks of approval of the don-Keys around him.

This resulted in Brown being summoned to attend the House of Keys, where he was found 95 guilty of contempt and sentenced to be imprisoned in Castle Rushen for six months. He successfully appealed and then filed an action against the Keys. He was awarded damages and costs. Twenty of the 21 Members of the House of Keys who had been present on the day when they unanimously condemned Brown to jail were now forced personally to pay the price for their action. The 21st Member, Frederick John LaMothe, who had recently died, was pursued 100 beyond the grave by his ex-colleagues, who attempted to claim his portion of the fine from his estate. Francis Pigott was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of the Isle of Man in 1860. His arrival was marked by a tremendous celebratory procession in Douglas, of which possibly the most controversial feature was a decorative arch erected outside the home of Robert Fargher in 105 Mona Terrace. Hanging from the arch were 24 rust-coloured pasteboard keys, a jar of oil, sandpaper and a placard which declared ‘A New Hand to Scour a Rusty Bunch’. Following Pigott’s sudden death, Henry Loch, aged only 35 and just recently married, was appointed Lieutenant-Governor in February 1863. The need to have sufficient public money to complete the building of a new breakwater, the continued calls for a directly elected House of 110 Keys and the involvement of the Keys in the acrimonious incident with James Brown convinced Loch by 1865 that he must speedily, determinedly and single-mindedly bring about resolutions. He realised that there should no longer be taxation without representation. So, in March 1866 the autocratic but diplomatic Loch was able to go to Tynwald to disclose the results of the year-long confidential negotiations he had been having with the British

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115 authorities. If Tynwald agreed to another increase in the amount of customs duties payable on certain imported articles, then the full surplus customs revenue would at last be available for Tynwald to use towards further improvements of the harbours and other public works. The surplus would be the amount left after the deduction of administration costs and a controversial annual fixed payment of £10,000. The £10,000 was to be given by the Island to Britain in 120 compensation for the loss to the British exchequer of the Manx customs duties which Britain had been taking since it bought the rights of the Lords of Man through the 1765 Revestment Act. A condition of the acceptance by the Members of the House of Keys of the new financial arrangements was to be that the people’s representatives should be elected by the people. The Keys once again appointed their experienced colleagues William Callister and George Dumbell to 125 meet and negotiate with Loch and the British authorities. After many months of long deliberations and important amendments, the Keys, with reservations, agreed to endorse both of the proposals. Everything was brought to a conclusion on 16th August 1866 when the House of Keys passed the Election Bill by 17 votes to three. Loch sent the House of Keys Election Act 1866 to the Home 130 Office for Royal Assent and it was promulgated by Tynwald Court on 20th December. The Isle of Man Customs, Harbours and Public Purposes Act, also of 1866, dealt with the surplus revenue. The Election Act allowed for the towns of Peel, Ramsey and Castletown to have one Member each, the town of Douglas to have three and the sheadings of Ayre, Michael, Garff, Glenfaba, Middle and Rushen also to have three. 135 Those entitled to be Members of the House of Keys were males aged 21 and over who were owners of real estate with set annual rental values. The qualifications for male voters were also based on ownership or tenancy of property of somewhat lesser set values. No women could stand for office or vote. The Isle of Man’s population in 1866 was 53,000, made up of 25,000 males and 28,000 140 females. The adult male population aged 21 and over was 12,500, which was an interesting 50- 50 split with those aged under 21. The reformers criticised the distribution of seats and the townsfolk claimed that their interests had been totally ignored and, despite having over two-fifths of the population, they only had one-quarter of the seats. The northern inhabitants objected that their representatives 145 would be unfairly outnumbered by those in the south. There were 3,962 names in the official register of electors, but the number of individuals who were eligible to vote would have been somewhat different. Certain men owned property in various parts of the Island, which meant that, with a property-related voting system, their names featured a number of times in the register. Indeed, Speaker Edward Gawne – same name, 150 no relation – from Kentraugh in Rushen was eligible to vote in each of the six constituencies of Michael, Garff, Glenfaba, Middle, Rushen and Castletown. Gawne, one of the three who voted against the Bill, was a Tory of the old school who truly believed that the old system of electing from within the establishment had been the best for the people of the Island. Because of his opposition to the forthcoming momentous changes, he 155 resigned as Speaker. Although the Island’s own surplus revenue was to be increased and separated from the British, Britain retained the right to legislate for and regulate the customs duties, and, whilst the expenditure was applied and disposed of as Tynwald approved, the Governor had the veto on the decision and the Treasury had ultimate control. The astute William Callister MHK was 160 unhappy with this situation, remarking:

It just comes to this, that we are to spend the money just as they tell us, and the idea that the representatives of the Island will have the right to spend it is all moonshine.

He also opposed the suggestion that the present Keys should gradually vacate their positions over the next three years and convinced the Members that they all should resign their seats at once.

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The Royal Proclamation dissolving the self-elected House of Keys was issued by Governor 165 Loch on 19th March 1867. Polling days were set for 3rd and 5th April. The mainly conservative nature of most of the candidates who were standing for election was based on the belief that the preservation of institutions such as the monarchy, the Church, the family and the class system was necessary in order to maintain political stability and social order. Indeed, the forthcoming first General Election of the House of Keys would see the 11 new 170 Members being mainly of the same political persuasion as their predecessors and colleagues. John Senhouse Goldie-Taubman would be chosen to serve as the first Speaker of the first publicly elected House of Keys, thereby thwarting the ambitions of George Dumbell, who, as the Mona’s Herald caustically reported:

ceasing to take the open field, skulks under a political hedge.

But Dumbell would continue to prosper through his association with mining and banking. 175 And what would become of Robert Fargher, James Brown, Henry Loch, Edward Gawne and William Callister? Fargher never lived to see the end of the self-elected Keys, having died four years beforehand. Brown, not the most popular of men, continued to fight the liberal cause. 180 The powerful authority of Lieutenant-Governor Loch resulted in him being able to bring about further improvements. He was knighted whilst still in office. In contrast, Speaker Gawne was offered a knighthood, which he declined, no doubt as a matter of principle based on his failure to keep the Keys as a self-elected body. And Callister, having served 18 years in the old House, served just two in the new one. 185 Although the election process was novel and exciting, the reality was that only a small minority of the population had the right to vote, and an even smaller number had the property qualification to stand for election – and the Lieutenant-Governor would have a tight control of Tynwald. But with the Keys set to become answerable to the people and have increased involvement in the public finances, the reforms coming about through the Election Act and the 190 changing attitudes of the traditional establishment would gradually lead to a more competent and mature Government. The once closed doors of the House of Keys were at last ready to be swung open by its Members to allow the first small but important steps of reform to enter in. Political democracy in the Isle of Man was about become a reality. 195 Thank you, ladies and gentlemen.

Several Members: Hear, hear.

2. MOTION

2.1. 150th anniversary of introduction of direct elections and ensuing progress for the Isle of Man – Motion carried

The Hon. Member for Middle (Mr Quayle) to move:

That this House notes the 150th anniversary of the introduction of direct elections for the House of Keys; notes the social and economic progress which has flowed from the introduction and extension of democratic elections in the Isle of Man; and welcomes the enhanced role for Tynwald and its Branches which this reform brought about.

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The Speaker: Hon. Members, we move to Item 2. Thank you very much, Dr Gawne. I will say a little bit more later, but we turn to Item 2 on our 200 Order Paper and I call on the Hon. Member for Middle, the Chief Minister, Mr Quayle.

The Chief Minister (Mr Quayle): Mr Speaker, for a proud Manxman it is a privilege and an honour to be moving this special resolution here in the historic surroundings of the old House of Keys. 205 This motion marks the 150th anniversary of a major milestone on the road to democracy in the Isle of Man. It is an opportunity to reflect on how democracy has evolved on our Island, what it means to us and how it might develop in the future. The Isle of Man is known as the home of the world’s oldest continuous parliament, and Tynwald has been in existence for more than 10 centuries, but democracy as we would now 210 recognise it only started to emerge within the last two centuries. It was not until 1867 that the old self-elected and self-perpetuating House of Keys finally gave way to a system of direct elections. This was a universal and significant step forward but still a long way from universal suffrage, the right to vote being restricted to men of property aged 21 and over. Over subsequent decades the House became more progressive and even pioneering in its 215 approach. In 1881 the Isle of Man was the first country in the world to give women the vote in national parliamentary elections, albeit that this was also subject to a property qualification. Much more recently, in 2006, the Island again led the way by becoming the first jurisdiction in the British Isles, and one of the first in Europe, to give the vote to 16 and 17-year-olds. So the Manx democratic system has evolved and matured since those first direct elections of 1867. An 220 important aspect of building our democracy has been the devolution of executive authority away from the Governor to Tynwald Members, and that has taken place since the 1950s. The process of democratic evolution is continuing today. In contrast to the very limited democracy of 150 years ago, our Programme for Government prioritises an inclusive society where every voice is heard. The Programme includes proposals to make Government more open 225 and accountable and to improve Government’s consultation and engagement with the public. Finally, Mr Speaker, the motion before us today notes the social and economic progress that has resulted from the introduction and development of democratic elections. That may sound like a tenuous connection, but let us be in no doubt: the Isle of Man would not be the place it is today without the House of Keys protecting and promoting the interests of the Island’s people. 230 At a time when there are fears for the future of democracy around the world, the story of the major Manx democratic institution, the House of Keys, is something to be celebrated and cherished. Mr Speaker, I beg to move.

235 The Speaker: Thank you, Chief Minister. I call on the Deputy Speaker of the House, the Hon. Member for Douglas East, Mr Robertshaw.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr Robertshaw): Thank you, Mr Speaker. 240 It must be right at the time of such an important commemoration not only to stop and look back, as we have done with fascination, at the evidence Dr Gawne has placed before us today, but also, as intimated in part of the motion before us, at what those achievements mean to us now and what they can bring in the future. How easy it is in the turbulence, worries and passions of our day-to-day political life to forget 245 the value of the gift those who came before us have bestowed upon us and the generations that have followed. For many people around the world the decisions that impact upon so many aspects of their lives are taken by distant, occasionally detached and sadly sometimes disinterested governments. For us, those decisions are made by the person next door or down the street or by

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250 the person we bump into in the shops. The degree of self-determination our small community has progressively achieved is quite remarkable and very special, and it is easy to forget how special it is. To underline this by way of example, Mr Speaker, I want to relay a recent personal experience to you. I had reason to represent the Isle of Man Government at the AGM of CONIFA in Geneva a few 255 weeks ago. CONIFA sprang up from the idea that non-sovereign states, regions and communities around the world could achieve greater profiles if they formed a new football association, permitting each team to play internationally under its own flag. With a world which is ever more global, conglomerated politically and dominated by multinationals, these things really matter more and more to people and their communities. 260 The original idea for CONIFA was conceived in the Isle of Man. The first competition, comprising just a few teams, took place at St John’s only a few short years ago – and, as it happens, and perhaps symbolically, only a short distance from Tynwald Hill. The association now has 44 teams representing a total population of 318 million people around the world, and as it continues to grow it has the potential to represent a further thousand or more other 265 communities and regions which in turn represent countless more millions of people. So, that small idea started in the Isle of Man is now spreading worldwide, and what took me aback at the AGM was the high regard the Isle of Man is held in and how others would wish to emulate some, and perhaps even all, of the advantages the Isle of Man has carved out for itself through the efforts of so many over the generations in a quiet and careful pursuit of self- 270 determination. What starts as sport and a desire to express pride in identity grows into trust, understanding and business opportunities, and this is proving to be the case here with CONIFA. We are able to achieve these things because of the efforts put in by those who came before us and by the efforts of those amongst us today. Let us hope, in turn, that those who follow us will also look 275 back on our efforts and will wish to say that we too did the right thing. In writing these words and reflecting on the intimate relationship between the past, the present and the future, for me it brought to mind the triskelion on our flag. This ancient symbol may not have a clear meaning, but for me the leg pointing back represented the past, the foot to the ground the present, and the remaining high leg pointing forwards to our hopes and aspirations for the 280 future, but each intimately interconnected and always turning – for very soon our present-day endeavours will be the past and what we set in train now for the future will be our children's present. I trust they will be able to judge the present we gift them kindly. Mr Speaker, I take pleasure in seconding the motion before us.

285 The Speaker: Hon. Members, the motion is at Item 2 on your Order Paper: that this House notes the 150th anniversary of the introduction of direct elections for the House of Keys; notes the social and economic progress which has flowed from the introduction and extension of democratic elections in the Isle of Man; and welcomes the enhanced role for Tynwald and its Branches which this reform brought about. 290 All those in favour, please say aye; those against, no. The ayes have it. The ayes have it. Hon. Members, that concludes the business of the House before us today.

Thanks and statement by the Speaker

The Speaker: I am sure you would wish me, on your behalf, to thank Dr Gawne for his talk to us. (Several Members: Hear, hear.) I would like to add to that my sincere thanks to Ruth Donnelly for her organisation today, as 295 well as Gail Corrin, Catreeney Mackie and Alex Mazzotta from the University College of Man for filming this event.

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I mentioned at the start that these elections were the first tentative steps on the road towards the active parliamentary democracy we now enjoy. It was perhaps the biggest seismic shift that the Keys had ever seen in its 900-year history to that point. Kings of Mann from 300 different nations had ruled and presided over Tynwald, the English Civil war had spilled over onto our shores, we almost became part of Cumbria, and the Crown of the Island had effectively been sold. But throughout all of this the Keys had remained unchanged. We must also remember this year that it commemorates 600 years since the Customary Laws Act, when we first decided to write down our laws and ordinances. 305 Since 1866 those tentative steps turned into strides as women were given the vote in 1881, the voting age has been reduced to 16 and the property qualifications have become a thing of the past. It has no doubt paved the way for our economic and social progress, as spelled out by the Chief Minister. It is, however, interesting that at the centenary of this legislation in January 1966 a proposal 310 was put to the House of Keys that the voting age should be lowered from 21 to 18 as a fitting tribute and further expansion of our democracy. That motion failed 11 votes to five. It was also the year that the Speaker’s ceremonial robes were gifted to us by the British government. We will also be holding a symposium on 1st April including a number of eminent academics to talk 315 further on this subject, as well as involving all Members in presentations to schoolchildren around the Island. As we look to the future we should be thankful to our forebears for preserving the institution of the House of Keys, an important part of Tynwald, the parliament of our small, separate and distinct Island nation. It has left us free to plough our own furrow in domestic and, increasingly, 320 also in international affairs. It is up to us, Hon. Members, to preserve, protect and uphold the rights and privileges of this House and our Island and to further that prosperity for all of our people who have placed their trust in you by electing you to this place. Now, Hon. Members, I invite you to join me in a photograph outside to mark the occasion. 325 This House now stands adjourned until next Tuesday, 21st March 2017 at 10.30 a.m. in Tynwald Court.

The House adjourned at 3.05 p.m.

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