Gladys Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 Now that election fever (well, ague) is upon us, I wonder what people's experiences of getting a response from MHKs has been? This follows a discussion last night with a fellow constituent who had raised an issue with his MHK (don't know what it was about) but had no reaction, yet the same MHK had called him to ask if he could count on his vote. The MHK was told, in no uncertain terms, that he could not! I sent an e-mail to Steve Rodan in his capacity as Minister for Health and Social Security, using his e-mail address on the IOM Government website asking a specific question about the health care on the Island and received no reply. A month or so later I re-sent the e-mail with a 'wondering if you are now in a position to reply". But no reply, not even an acknowledgement of either communication! The question was not a constituency matter, but it was relevant to his Ministry and given that I had sent an e-mail to the publicised address and the question was a fair and pretty uncontentious one, relating to a matter that I had particular interest at the time, I do wonder why I was not even given the courtesy of an acknowledgement, let alone a reply! Why give an e-mail address, if the recipient doesn't feel under any obligation to reply, even if it is a polite brush-off along the lines of "we do not have any information on that area"? Has anyone else had similar experiences of asking reasonable questions of our elected representatives and actually receiving a reply, whether or not it is the answer you would like to hear? Perhaps they would be a bit sharper now, but one of the positives, alledgedly, of the Island is the accessibility of the politicians! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lard Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 There is a place called the United Kingdom where they have Members of Parliament. You write to one of those kiddies and you are guaranteed a reply or at least an acknowledgement within a very specific time followed by a reply. Guaranteed. There are also strict rules for people in Public Office, Civil Servants. _____________________________________________________________________ There is a place called Toy Town in the middle of the Irish Sea. There are many politicians and Civil Servants who dream only of their sandy beached retirement home and their next free dinner. Many letters are simply put in the 'Hope It Goes Away Tray'. ______________________________________________________________________ For the avoidance of doubt I must make it absolutely clear that there do exist good politicians. There are a few good Civil Servants who act professionally too. A few. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addie Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 Yes, Gladys. I experienced a very similar scenario. My email to The Minister of Fun, concerning the DTL, was totally ignored whilst he seemingly had time to play at being a radio DJ. The email was, like yours, sent directly to him via the government website. I eventually got - more than a month and after a second email - an unsatisfactory response (not their fault) from someone who was not the recipient of the email. Not very good at all. Now that election fever (well, ague) is upon us, I wonder what people's experiences of getting a response from MHKs has been? This follows a discussion last night with a fellow constituent who had raised an issue with his MHK (don't know what it was about) but had no reaction, yet the same MHK had called him to ask if he could count on his vote. The MHK was told, in no uncertain terms, that he could not! I sent an e-mail to Steve Rodan in his capacity as Minister for Health and Social Security, using his e-mail address on the IOM Government website asking a specific question about the health care on the Island and received no reply. A month or so later I re-sent the e-mail with a 'wondering if you are now in a position to reply". But no reply, not even an acknowledgement of either communication! The question was not a constituency matter, but it was relevant to his Ministry and given that I had sent an e-mail to the publicised address and the question was a fair and pretty uncontentious one, relating to a matter that I had particular interest at the time, I do wonder why I was not even given the courtesy of an acknowledgement, let alone a reply! Why give an e-mail address, if the recipient doesn't feel under any obligation to reply, even if it is a polite brush-off along the lines of "we do not have any information on that area"? Has anyone else had similar experiences of asking reasonable questions of our elected representatives and actually receiving a reply, whether or not it is the answer you would like to hear? Perhaps they would be a bit sharper now, but one of the positives, alledgedly, of the Island is the accessibility of the politicians! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Declan Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 I once sent a rambling, drunken e-mail to Peter Karran. He replied promptly and had the good grace to treat the e-mail seriously and gave me a serious answer. I felt a bit guilty about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juan Kerr Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 I sent an e-mail to Steve Rodan in his capacity as Minister for Health and Social Security, using his e-mail address on the IOM Government website asking a specific question about the health care on the Island and received no reply. A month or so later I re-sent the e-mail with a 'wondering if you are now in a position to reply". But no reply, not even an acknowledgement of either communication! Copy it and all the chase mails in to newsdesk@iomonline.co.im or manx radio and see whether he "remembers" to reply. As for Addie's comments - DC seems far too busy having "fun" to respond to most things. What do you expect - he's one man and generating all that "fun" takes so much time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Sausages Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 I wrote to Pam Crowe asking her what my chances really were of getting a first time buyers house, because I'd been on the waiting list for over 5 years. She replied fairly promptly telling me how good the scheme was because it had provided houses for lots of people. I don't think she actually read my letter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lonan3 Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 I'm old-fashioned, I suppose. I write letters, telephone, or go to see the MHK in person (something that is rarely possible in the UK) and I've always been able to obtain a response. As regards Steve Rodan - he's always in his shop on a Saturday morning and I've found that, whether it's a constituency matter or something to do with his (or any other govt dept), he's always been extremely helpful either investigating what I've asked about or providing an immediate answer. Generally speaking, the ones I've found who respond asap to letters have been: Brenda Cannell, Bill Henderson, John Houghton, Adrian Earnshaw, Steve Rodan, Alec Downie, Donald Gelling, David Cannan, david anderson and Martyn Quayle. Those who may take a little longer include John Shimmin, Phil Braidwood, Richard Corkill, Dudley Butt and Allan Bell. Some of the others can take a lo-nnnnng time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Flynn Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 When inviting MHK's to meetings, Peter Karran always replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gladys Posted October 1, 2006 Author Share Posted October 1, 2006 To Lonan 3, the mode of putting the question should not matter. If an MHK has an e-mail address AND PUBLICISES it, you should be safe to assume that messages sent to it will be read by the MHK and treated by them as valid communications warranting replies. Edited to add: I put my full name and address in the e-mails so that Mr Rodan could be sure that it was a genuine question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lonan3 Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 To Lonan 3, the mode of putting the question should not matter. If an MHK has an e-mail address AND PUBLICISES it, you should be safe to assume that messages sent to it will be read by the MHK and treated by them as valid communications warranting replies. Edited to add: I put my full name and address in the e-mails so that Mr Rodan could be sure that it was a genuine question. I wouldn't dream of denying that, Gladys. However, perhaps the fact that my letters are sent to home addresses rather than to a government website, means that they're more likely to be picked up quickly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gladys Posted October 1, 2006 Author Share Posted October 1, 2006 Its an e-mail address; surely the Hon Min logs on now and again when he is in the office? Hasn't he logged on since March? Not meaning to be snippy, Lonan, but the IOM Govt website publicises e-mail addresses, so a reasonable expectation is that any communications sent to them will be received and dealt with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparky Posted October 2, 2006 Share Posted October 2, 2006 Its an e-mail address; surely the Hon Min logs on now and again when he is in the office? Hasn't he logged on since March? Not meaning to be snippy, Lonan, but the IOM Govt website publicises e-mail addresses, so a reasonable expectation is that any communications sent to them will be received and dealt with. I agree, if you publicise it you should check it. An email address is no different to a mail address or telephone number, why give it out if you have no intention of using it. IMHO and experience DTL and DoT are the worst at responding to email, phone or letter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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