Mount Murray Report

PART C 7. THE ISLE OF MAN SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT i) Introduction 7.1 The Tynwald resolution of 19th February 2002 required us to look at the government’s handling of various matters. It was therefore incumbent on us to ensure that we sufficiently understood the Isle of Man system of government. To achieve this understanding we asked for and received statements from many politicians, civil servants and others. From these statements, and from the answers to the many questions which were asked of them, we received much relevant information, particularly in respect of the way in which the system worked, and works, in practice. To this information we added the result of our own researching of statute and guidance. We are consequently satisfied that we have achieved a good and sufficient understanding of the Isle of Man system of government over the last decade and more in order for us to approach our remit with knowledge of the relevant contextual system within which events took place. 7.2 Our enquiries have extended to two local authorities and, for this reason, we include a very brief outline of the structure and functions of local government, even though it is not at the forefront of our remit. 7.3 This section identifies the relevant basic elements of the Island’s system of government within which the Department of Local Government and the Environment, including its Planning Committee and its planning office, operates. It is this system which allowed for the irregularities which occurred in the Planning Committee and in the planning office, which went uncorrected during the 1990s, and to which, later, we recommend some changes. We trust that it will also be of assistance to readers of the report who may not be especially familiar with this system, which is relevant background to many matters set out in this report. ii) Constitutional Status of the Isle of Man 7.4 The Isle of Man is “an internally self-governing dependency of the British Crown”1 or, more simply, a “Crown dependency”. 7.5 The government of the Isle of Man includes a head of state in the person of Her Majesty the Queen; a legislature known as the Court of Tynwald; an executive headed by the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers; and an independent judiciary and system of Courts.2 7.6 His Excellency the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man is the Queen’s personal representative in the Island.3 7.7 By convention, the United Kingdom parliament does not legislate for the Isle of Man in matters of taxation and other matters of purely domestic concern. 1 Government and Law in the Isle of Man pages 92 and 98 2 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 92 3 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 102 61 iii) Legislature 7.8 Tynwald,4 in its fullest sense, comprises the Sovereign; the Legislative Council, including the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, the Attorney General for the Isle of Man and eight Members who are elected by the House of Keys; and the House of Keys, including its twenty-four Members. 7.9 The Legislative Council and the House of Keys are known as “the Branches” of Tynwald.5 The Branches sit separately when they consider draft legislation in the form of Bills for enactment. When the Branches sit together, this is known as a “sitting of Tynwald”. Tynwald is primarily responsible for regulating the finances of the Isle of Man Government and for determining matters of policy which it does by resolution.6 7.10 The legislation for which Tynwald and its Branches are responsible7 and which, for the most part, regulates the domestic affairs of the Isle of Man takes two forms, namely primary legislation which is brought before the legislature for consideration in the form of draft Bills which become Acts of Tynwald8 at the completion of their legislative process, and delegated, subordinate or secondary legislation9 in the form of Orders, Regulations, rules and resolutions which are made by Tynwald, the Governor in Council, government departments, statutory boards, as appropriate, in accordance with the provisions of respective Acts. Primary legislation requires Royal Assent10 before it may be passed into law. 7.11 In addition to their primary function of the consideration of draft legislation, the individual Members of the Legislative Council have other responsibilities, including membership of Tynwald, ministerial appointments and appointments to membership of government departments, statutory boards and various Committees. 7.12 The twenty-four Members of the House of Keys are elected by the Island's fifteen constituencies at general elections which are held every five years.11 There are no party politics in the Isle of Man in the conventional sense of two or three major political parties which compete for control of the legislature. While the Manx Labour Party has a small representation, and a group of Members of like mind comprise the Alliance for Progressive Government which is also known as “the APG” and which was formerly the Alternative Policy Group, the majority of Members are elected as independents, whether by public elections in the case of the Keys12 or by the Keys in the case of the Legislative Council.13 7.13 The primary function of the House of Keys is the consideration and approval or rejection of draft legislation in the form of Bills,14 but its Members have other responsibilities similar to the additional responsibilities of the Members of the Legislative Council as set out above. 4 Tynwald Companion 2000, page 1.14 5 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 214 & Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.1 6 Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.3 7 Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.1 8 Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.2 9 Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.3 10 Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.4 11 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 266 12 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 266 13 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 258 14 Tynwald Companion 2000 page 1.6 62 iv) Executive prior to 1980s 7.14 Prior to the implementation of the changes which were made in the 1980s, the Lieutenant Governor presided over Tynwald and exercised significant executive powers.15 He was assisted in the exercise of his functions by an Executive Council and a wide variety of boards and Committees of Tynwald whose functions were frequently advisory rather than executive. v) Changes in the Executive in the 1980s 7.15 During the early 1980s, there were a series of moves to reform the manner in which executive powers were exercised in the Isle of Man. The main effects of the reforms were to constitute a Council of Ministers, in succession to the former Executive Council;16 determine and, where appropriate, transfer the functions of the various boards and Committees to the boards of Tynwald which were to be re-constituted as the government departments and statutory boards; re-constitute the boards of Tynwald as government departments17 and statutory boards18, in succession to the various boards and Committees which were then in existence; and transfer various executive functions which were exercised by the Lieutenant Governor to the Council of Ministers, the government departments and the statutory boards. In summary, the process culminated in the complete rationalisation of the responsibilities of what were some twenty seven boards at the beginning of the decade into nine major departments each headed by a minister and two other Members of Tynwald.19 7.16 These reforms followed after the publication in September 1985 of a Report of the Select Committee of Tynwald advocating such reforms. vi) Executive in the 1990s – the Ministerial System 7.17 By the end of the 1980s the reforms were in place so that the Executive in the 1990s became as explained below. 7.18 Executive authority is vested in the Chief Minister, who is appointed from among the Members of Tynwald, and his nine ministers who are Members of Tynwald. The Chief Minister and his nine ministers comprise the Council of Ministers. They are responsible for the nine government departments, together with the seven statutory boards, subject to the overall direction of “the Governor in Council”.20 7.19 The Council of Ministers, the government departments and the statutory boards are responsible to Tynwald for the exercise of their functions. In addition, there are a number of other “offices” which serve to meet prescribed objectives, but which are outside the strict confines of the ministerial system. These several other “offices” are such as the Chief Secretary’s Office and the Attorney General's Chambers.21 The day-to-day affairs of these “offices” are administered in each case by a staff of civil servants.22 15 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 103 16 Council of Ministers Act 1990 Document L15 17 Government Departments Act 1987 Document L14 18 Statutory Boards Act 1987 Document L17 19 C21 Poole Report paragraph 1.2 20 Council of Ministers Act 1990 Document L15 21 Government and Law in the Isle of Man page 410 22 Guide to Departments, Statutory Boards and Offices section 4 Document L25 63 7.20 The Chief Minister, Council of Ministers and the government departments are explained further below. The statutory boards, about which it is not necessary to say anything further, are responsible to Tynwald for the exercise of their respective statutory functions. vii) Chief Minister and Council of Ministers 7.21 The Council of Ministers Act 1990 requires that the Chief Minister is appointed from among the Members of Tynwald by the Lieutenant Governor on the nomination of Tynwald.23 7.22 The 1990 Act also requires that the ministers are appointed from among the Members of Tynwald by the Governor, acting on the advice and with the concurrence of the Chief Minister.24 7.23 As a matter of practice, it is usual for the Chief Minister to seek to appoint ministers from among Members of the House of Keys.

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