Isle of Man: Candidates for chief minister lay out policy ambitions

The new chief minister will be chosen by the House of Keys next week

The two candidates vying for the top job in Manx politics have laid out their main priorities for the next administration.

Statements released by Alex Allinson and Alfred Cannan detail how each intends to lead the government if elected as chief minister.

MHKs now have five days to consider who they will back to succeed Howard Quayle in the role for the next five years.

The vote will take place when the House of Keys sits on Tuesday.

Dr Allinson and Mr Cannan, who were both re-elected at the general election last month, have been seeking the support of fellows MHKs as they compete to take control of the government.

Parliamentary rules dictate each nominee must release a declaration of their aims and policies ahead of the vote.

The statements cover the preferred approach of each in tackling headline issues like post-Covid recovery, economic growth, and housing needs.

Shared commitments include restructuring the Department of Infrastructure, aligning the minimum and the living wage, and more transparent government communication.

Dr Alex Allinson said "new, more inclusive, less defensive" leadership was needed

First elected in the constituency of Ramsey in 2016, Dr Allinson has served as education minister since 2020 and threw his name into the hat for next chief minister earlier this year.

He has now outlined his ambitions for "progressive social change", including a housing strategy to help people afford to buy homes, updated legislation on zero hour contracts, and increased investment in primary care.

Dr Allinson's statement also lists a number of structural reforms like the creation of a new deputy chief minister role, limits on department memberships and a review of the Council of Ministers' rules on collective responsibility.

On drug policy, he backs reclassifying cannabis to class C "as a step towards decriminalisation", and giving police extra resources to tackle drug imports and "break county lines".

Alfred Cannan said he wanted a "strong, caring, and united society"

Mr Cannan, who was first elected to Ayre and Michael in 2011, became treasury minister in 2016 after missing out to Howard Quayle in the last chief minister election.

In his latest bid for the job he said he wants to develop a five-year "Island Plan", which would lay the foundations for a "secure, vibrant and sustainable future", as well as a short-term response to rising energy prices.

In his statement, Mr Cannan said he aims to have "improved and transparent" policy debate in the form of a yearly review of the government plan, annual reports by government bodies justifying actions and staffing levels, and a "Tynwald conference" with members of the public each September.

He also calls for the creation of new boards focused on economic development and major projects, as well as a policy unit to improve cross-government working.