Bid to ease ousting Isle of Man chief minister passes first hurdle
A bid to relax the rules for removing an Isle of Man chief minister from the role has passed its first hurdle in the House of Keys.
MHKs unanimously backed giving permission for Daphne Caine to bring forward a change in the law that would reduce the amount of support needed to secure a vote of no confidence. The proposal would cut the number of votes needed from 16 to 13. Mrs Caine said it should reflect the amount of support needed to be elected. Under the current system, only 13 of the 24 MHKs need to back a candidate for the post, but a two-thirds majority is needed to remove the individual. A similar bid to change the system was rejected in 2016. 'Illogical inconsistency' Mrs Caine said any chief minister whose support had "dwindled to 13 or 14 members" would leave the island with "a crippled government and no credibility". That scenario could be "very damaging" to the island's reputation, she said. The proposed change was "not in any way related to the present incumbent" but aimed to "rectify an illogical inconsistency" in the current law, she added. Speaking after the sitting, Chris Thomas MHK said the current system made the chief minister "untouchable". He added that as only 13 members were needed to "block any legislation and the budget", that would make the role "untenable anyway". Roger Tomlinson of the Positive Action Group, which has campaigned for the public election of the chief minister, said the change would "create a tension" which would improve the quality of new legislation being passed. "If a chief minister can be elected by 13 members, surely he should be asked to withdraw on the say so of 13 members," he added. Why not follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and Twitter? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk