Isle of Man Government Profile 2009

Country name

conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Isle of Man
abbreviation: I.O.M.

Dependency status

British crown dependency

Government type

parliamentary democracy

Capital

name: Douglas
geographic coordinates: 54 09 N, 4 29 W
time difference: UTC 0 (five hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions

none; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 24 local authorities each with its own elections

Affiliation

(British crown dependency)

Independence

none (British crown dependency)

National holiday

Tynwald Day, 5 July

Constitution

unwritten; note - The Isle of Man Constitution Act of 1961 does not embody the unwritten Manx Constitution

Legal system

the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply and Manx statutes

Suffrage

16 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state: Lord of Mann Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Lieutenant Governor Sir Paul K. HADDACKS (since 17 October 2005)
head of government: Chief Minister Tony BROWN (since 14 December 2006)
cabinet: Council of Ministers
elections: the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch; the chief minister is elected by the Tynwald for a five-year term; election last held 14 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011)
election results: House of Keys speaker Tony BROWN elected chief minister by the Tynwald

Legislative branch

bicameral Tynwald consists of the Legislative Council (11 seats; members composed of the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, a nonvoting attorney general, and 8 others named by the House of Keys) and the House of Keys (24 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Keys - last held 23 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2011)
election results: House of Keys - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Liberal Vannin Party 2, Man Labor Party 1, independents 21

Judicial branch

High Court of Justice (justices are appointed by the Lord Chancellor of England on the nomination of the lieutenant governor)

Political parties and leaders

Alliance for Progressive Government; Liberal Vannin Party [Peter KARRAN]; Man Labor Party; Man Nationalist Party (Mec Vannin) [Bernard MOFFATT]
note: most members sit as independents

Political pressure groups and leaders

Alliance for Progressive Government or APG (a government watchdog); Mec Vannin (political party advocating a sovereign state and environment policies); note - has only had one member elected to the Tynwald

International organization participation

UPU

Diplomatic representation in the US

none (British crown dependency)

Diplomatic representation from the US

none (British crown dependency)

Flag description

red with the Three Legs of Man emblem (Trinacria), in the center; the three legs are joined at the thigh and bent at the knee; in order to have the toes pointing clockwise on both sides of the flag, a two-sided emblem is used

Group

All, OREA, Europe/French Dependencies, Europe