Chief Minister takes over responsibility for Department for Enterprise

The Chief Minister has taken up the role as the Minister for Enterprise. It follows the election of The Hon Laurence Skelly MLC as President of Tynwald.

Upon election, Mr Skelly was required to relinquish his role as a minister, in line with the Constitution Act 1990.  It sets out a provision that the President of Tynwald cannot serve as chief minister, a minister, or as a member of a Government department or statutory board.

The Chief Minister Howard Quayle MHK said: “With the final scheduled sitting of Tynwald taking place this week and an imminent general election, I have made the decision to take over from Mr Skelly as Minister for Enterprise, rather than make a new appointment to the Council of Ministers.

“I wish to pay tribute to Mr Skelly – who has served as Minister for Economic Development and subsequently as Minister for Enterprise for seven years – for his leadership and for the integral role he has played in growing the Island’s economy and driving efforts to continue our diversification.

“In 2017, I commissioned a strategic review of the then Department of Economic Development to ensure Government could fulfil its ambition for the Isle of Man to be an island of enterprise and opportunity, as set out in the Programme for Government. A number of recommendations from the review were implemented, including the creation of the Department for Enterprise, with a sharper focus on driving economic growth. It also saw the creation of the four business development agencies.”

The Chief Minister continued: “As the Island continues its economic recovery from COVID-19, there remains much work for Government to do, and I look forward to working with the Department’s political members over the coming weeks and months to drive these efforts forward.”

The Chief Minister was previously a Member for the Department of Economic Development and a Member of Tynwald’s Economic Policy Review Committee.