Commissioner wants to be a voice for young people

Gabriella Corkish wants to be "a voice" for her contemporaries

The youngest local authority member on the Isle of Man has said she would like to "be a voice" for her age group.

Gabriella Corkish, 19, was elected as an Onchan Commissioner in the recent local authority elections, and will hold the role of Onchan School Education Representative for a year.

Having grown up around politics, Corkish is the granddaughter of Geoff Corkish, who was elected as an MHK in 2006 and later became an MLC.

Corkish said: "Young people don't have a say very much in politics purely because they don't know who to talk, or maybe who their MHKs are, who their commissioners are, or how to get in touch with them."

'Do what is right'

"I want to be an open, approachable person that can do what's right for the community," she said, adding that she hoped to "be a voice for younger people".

She said she had always taken an interest in politics and studied Government and Politics at AS Level.

Corkish said she wanted to look at how to improve Onchan Park for the teenagers in the village, but also to improve sheltered accommodation for older people.

"I want to make my mark, help the community but also be a fresh face for the future," she added.

Corkish, who currently works at the Welcome Centre, said she would look in the future to join the House of Keys or Legislative Council, but added "being a commissioner is a good place to start".

"If you're passionate about something and you care about your community and how things are run" then commissioners was "the way to go."

"I hope that me doing this does get people involved," she added.