House of Keys 18 Mar 2013 Act As a Revising Chamber for Bills

House of Keys 18 Mar 2013 Act As a Revising Chamber for Bills

ELECTION OF FOUR MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL Procedural 1. Election of four persons to serve as Members of the Legislative Council for a period expiring on 28th February 2018 in place of Mr David Callister; Mr Edmund Lowey; Mr Juan Turner; and Mr Tony Wild. Nominees Proposers Mrs Linda Bowers-Kasch Mr Peter Karran MHK Mr Michael Coleman Hon. David Cretney MHK Mr Geoff Corkish Hon. Juan Watterson MHK Mr Peter Hill Mr Peter Karran MHK Mr Nigel Malpass Hon. Allan Bell MHK Mr Juan Turner Hon. Tim Crookall MHK Mr Tony Wild Mr John Houghton MHK The Speaker: Hon. Members, we turn to the single Item on our Order Paper and this is to elect a person to the Legislative Council for a term expiring on 28th February 2018. There are seven nominations on the Order Paper for the four places. The nominations were all accompanied by statements of qualification and reason and support as required and the papers were circulated to Hon. Members by the Secretary on 28th February. Under the Isle of Man Constitution (Elections to Council) Act 1971, as amended by the Constitution (Amendment) Act 2008, once the elections have begun, they must be completed, though they may be adjourned to the next day once only. Notwithstanding any other provisions of Standing Orders, I have discretion to determine the time at which a sitting of the House of Keys to elect Members of the Legislative Council shall adjourn. Once the elections have been called, no other business may be taken by the House of Keys sitting alone, until the elections have been completed. However, if it appears to me that no progress can be made, I do have power to call for fresh nominations to be made in writing, which triggers a one-month delay and subsequent two-week period, as before. I also have power to suspend this sitting at any time, if this appears useful. I shall first call on each Member to propose the candidate whom that Member has nominated. I shall then call for a seconder to the nomination. Only the proposer and seconder may speak. Under Standing Order 8.3(5) each Member may vote for any one or more candidates up to the number of vacancies to be filled or vote for no candidates. All voting papers completed otherwise are invalid and no vote recorded on them will be counted. Voting is by placing an X in the box of the ballot paper, opposite the candidate you wish to vote for. Under the Act the successful candidate needs no fewer than 13 votes in his or her favour. If, when voting has been concluded, the vacancy remains, I shall call for fresh nominations. As before, we will proceed to a paper ballot in relation to the names on the Order Paper. If it is necessary, I shall then call for fresh nominations for a further round of elections. Nomination of Mrs Linda Bowers-Kasch The Speaker: I now call for nominations and I call on the Hon. Member for Onchan, Mr Karran. Mr Karran: Vainstyr Loayreyder, we are here today to vote for individuals to become Members of our Island’s Legislative Council. In putting forward my nomination of Mrs Linda Bowers-Kasch, I have most carefully considered the primary aims and objectives of the Legislative Council, the skills and experience that, in my most firm opinion we need to vote on here today. To explain upon this statement, I have taken the opportunity to revisit the core functions of the Legislative Council, to give a great deal of thought to what type of skills and experience actually are needed to effectively discharge the responsibilities of the role required of the Council and its individual Members. You may think that this is a process we have already gone through prior to making the nomination. However, I respectfully ask you to stop and consider yourselves, if indeed, this is the reality. It is all too easy for familiarity to allow us to recite the core purpose and functions and over the passing of time the demarcation lines and the areas of remit to become blurred collectively. We now have the opportunity to refresh and realign, where necessary, to elect a Legislative Council incorporating fresh blood, experience in the relevant skills and disciplines. In the primary functions of a modern Legislative Council is to consider and advise on new legislation and to House of Keys 18 Mar 2013 act as a revising Chamber for Bills. It is a prerogative that we have given us, that have significant experience in reviewing legislation with a proven ability to comment and advise upon. The world has changed and has become increasingly global in its outlook. Therefore, it is most important that the impact of legislation and the change be considered from an impact, not just from within the Isle of Man, but also the impact from extra- territorial perspective, believing we cannot ignore the external factors that can significantly influence the wellbeing of our Island and our people. I have known Linda Bowers-Kasch for some time and you may recall that she did stand as a candidate for Liberal Vannin in the constituency of Ramsey, where she lives. In my interactions with Linda I can count on her to provide honest, objective comment and opinion and in situations where that opinion may differ, she will listen to various opinions and provide a considered reason for her own opinion. The prevailing factor is that Linda has the same desire to see fairness and equality of treatment, and that the Island’s overall wellbeing is at the forefront of any decisions made. She is a champion of driving a culture of value for money. Linda has acted as a mentor to individuals and also devised and delivered workshops to motivate, inspire and encourage people that they are able to achieve and progress in life. She firmly believes that people should have the opportunity to achieve, irrespective of their background, financial circumstances and academic proficiency. That achievement should be supported and encouraged and should equip people to be able to do the best that they can. Her full CV is available and has been circulated, but I shall now highlight some of the skills and experiences she has acquired over a long and distinguished career in the finance sector, since commencing in 1973. Starting from the grassroots level with nearly 40 years in the sector, Linda worked her way up to vice president level in the finance world and although various roles and responsibilities, most of which have had an international remit, she is considered to be a subject matter expert in regulatory matters, governance and control. Linda’s overall passion and commitment has been undertaken across the globe in areas such as prevention of terrorism, financial crime, anti-bribery and corruption, and overall good governance is major driver to her, as she believes that these are important issues that impact on society, integrity and the safety of people. Latterly, Linda has successfully delivered a programme of review and change as a senior consultant within a US global financial firm, which she saw her advice and made recommendations upon regulations, legislative requirements, forthcoming changes in overall governance and control against the strategic corporate objectives. This was the consultancy she won with her own company, which gave her added opportunity to raise awareness of the Island and its remit in both the city and the US. Linda believes we should all be ambassadors for the Isle of Man, never missing a chance to promote the Island particularly on our business trips. Much of her career has involved the reviewing of legislation and also supporting the drive and the correct interpretation and implementation. Linda has been a key person in formulating and setting of global policy, capable for implementation across multi-jurisdictional and cultures. Linda is a member of the Institute of Directors and also a member of the Isle of Man Employment Tribunal. It is my firm opinion that within our legislative framework, we must acquire people with the skills that have a proven track record for relevant achievement. Linda clearly has such skills coupled with senior leadership experience. I believe she would be a huge asset to the overall government, via the Legislative Council, if elected. Her commitment to the Island should also be recognised, as she continues to maintain her home here, since 1988, although had many opportunities over the years that could have taken her away permanently. I hope Hon. Members will vote for fresh blood to support our journey through tough economic times and challenges. In conclusion, these are the reasons why I propose and nominate Mrs Linda Bowers-Kasch. The Speaker: Hon. Member for Douglas South, Mrs Beecroft. Mrs Beecroft: Thank you, Mr Speaker, I beg to second. Nomination of Mr Michael Coleman The Speaker: I call the Hon. Mr Cretney, Member for Douglas South. Mr Cretney: Thank you, Mr Speaker. All Members will have received the CV of Michael Coleman. For those who did not already know him, can I thank those Members who have taken one of the two opportunities to meet him, firstly face-to-face and secondly alongside the other six candidates for the election on Friday last. Can I take this opportunity to thank each of them for outlining their policies and answering Members’ questions. Stability is perhaps more important than ever at this time, so I do hope Hon. Members will feel able to support candidates in this election, whatever their views on the future of the Legislative Council.

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