Tynwald Members’ emoluments

Overview

The High Court of Tynwald is the parliament of the Isle of Man. Tynwald is of Norse origin and over a thousand years old. It is the oldest parliament in the world with an unbroken existence.

Tynwald Court has two Branches, the House of Keys and the Legislative Council. The House of Keys has 24 Members, all directly elected by the people. The Legislative Council has 11 Members. Of these, eight are elected by the House of Keys while the other three (the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop and HM Attorney General for the Isle of Man) sit ex officio.

The Branches sit separately on a weekly basis in Douglas to consider primary legislation. They sit together as Tynwald Court monthly in Douglas, and annually at St John’s, for other parliamentary purposes.

Most Members of Tynwald hold additional offices, or roles, which carry further responsibilities on top of attending sittings. Many of these come under one of two main types: executive roles and scrutiny roles. Executive roles include Chief Minister, Departmental Minister or Member, and membership of various public bodies such as the Manx Utilities Authority or Culture Vannin. Scrutiny roles include membership of parliamentary committees such as the Public Accounts Committee or a Select Committee on a particular topic.

The present arrangements for Tynwald Members’ emoluments are described in the attached consultation paper. The word “emoluments” is used because it is a broad term and includes all pay or salary, allowances, expenses and benefits – in other words, the entire financial package which is made available to a Tynwald Member.

Why your views matter

In February 2018, Tynwald resolved that the Emoluments Committee should establish a review of the emoluments of Tynwald Members. In May 2019 an independent Panel was appointed to undertake the review. Its members are Ian Cochrane (chair), Jennifer Houghton and Sir Miles Walker. The Panel has decided to consult the public.

What happens next

The results of the consultation will be taken into account by the Panel in preparing its report to the Emoluments Committee. This report will include an analysis of what people said in response to the consultation. The Panel has been asked to report to the Emoluments Committee by 31 December 2019. The Emoluments Committee will decide whether, and if so when, to publish the Panel’s report.