Chris Thomas MHK sacked from DOI

[english zloty]

10 hours ago, Zarley said:

Didn't CT pretty much say as much on Tuesday when he stood up to declare he was also resigning from the housing board? I seem to recall he used the word "unfettered". I took it to mean he plans on being a right pain in Alf's nether regions. 

Ah, like Kate then 😂😂

[Banker]

Jason Moorhouse said he would consider being minister if asked but wanted to see how Alf was working first!

[Non-Believer]

3 minutes ago, Banker said:

Jason Moorhouse said he would consider being minister if asked but wanted to see how Alf was working first!

He'd only want the gig so he could get to the bottom of train whistles...

[joebean]

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/comin-trying-to-make-pragmatic-compromises-whilst-risking-public-money-says-mhk/
 

Precisely what I don’t get about Chris Thomas. There is always lots of talk about policy and directions but not much in the way of tangible actions. Here he we have him apparently arguing for policy mandates and alignments of MHKs that are simply not achievable within our current political practices, elections and structures, but I have never heard him suggesting anything different in the way of reforming Isle of Man politics. He is a man of prevarication and waffle who says he will go back to leading from the back. That sums up his whole approach. He is taking up a seat that somebody else might use more effectively… if only we could attract such a person into the Tynwald waffle-show. 

[GreyWolf]

He reminds me of uncle Colm from Derry girls.

[The Voice of Reason]

2 minutes ago, GreyWolf said:

He reminds me of uncle Colm from Derry girls.

Or Frank Spencer, as I think I’ve mentioned previously.

[code99]

48 minutes ago, joebean said:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/comin-trying-to-make-pragmatic-compromises-whilst-risking-public-money-says-mhk/

An outsider to the Island listening to this interview could be forgiven for thinking that Mr Thomas, a political philosopher and cerebral economist, had just last week joined the House of Keys. However, Mr Thomas is not new to the House of Keys; he has been an MHK and a Minister for ‘this that and the other’ for a decade. As I read it, his MO has been to diss from the sidelines when not a Minister, toe the line when in power and achieve very little, get kicked out of ‘power’ for ‘lack of delivery’ and then rebuild his image as a fair but ferocious critic of the government, just in time to get re-elected again!

Interestingly, he is now concerned that behind closed doors, government is spending ‘too much’ - something he has nodded through when he was in CoMin. It is a pity that the interviewer did not ask Mr Thomas about his theoretical £300m ‘masterplan’ for the Airport. If Mr Thomas thinks the government funds are being whittled away too quickly, where does he think that £300m is going to come from? IMHO, he is a sad indictment of our struggling political system.    

[2112]

Whilst Chris Thomas may try to get re-elected he may find that the constituents of Douglas Central may wish a change. Chris Thomas started off a fine and great MHK but I think he neglected his constituents when he was made a Minister. He has upset residents on Demesne Road and Westmorland Road in his zeal for redevelopment. He may have resigned from the Housing and Communities Board, so does that mean he will criticise the MDC if it’s in the interests of Douglas Central? 

[Moghrey Mie]

1 hour ago, code99 said:

An outsider to the Island listening to this interview could be forgiven for thinking that Mr Thomas, a political philosopher and cerebral economist, had just last week joined the House of Keys. However, Mr Thomas is not new to the House of Keys; he has been an MHK and a Minister for ‘this that and the other’ for a decade. As I read it, his MO has been to diss from the sidelines when not a Minister, toe the line when in power and achieve very little, get kicked out of ‘power’ for ‘lack of delivery’ and then rebuild his image as a fair but ferocious critic of the government, just in time to get re-elected again!

Interestingly, he is now concerned that behind closed doors, government is spending ‘too much’ - something he has nodded through when he was in CoMin. It is a pity that the interviewer did not ask Mr Thomas about his theoretical £300m ‘masterplan’ for the Airport. If Mr Thomas thinks the government funds are being whittled away too quickly, where does he think that £300m is going to come from? IMHO, he is a sad indictment of our struggling political system.    

I think he is more concerned about the Economic Strategy Fund of £100 million that was in the 2023 Budget.

[Dirty Buggane]

I think he more interested in staying a member of Club Tynwald and riding the gravy train.

[offshoremanxman]

1 hour ago, 2112 said:

Whilst Chris Thomas may try to get re-elected he may find that the constituents of Douglas Central may wish a change. 

I’d say he has much more chance of getting re elected in Douglas now he has no connection to the DOI anymore. 

[code99]

1 hour ago, Moghrey Mie said:

I think he is more concerned about the Economic Strategy Fund of £100 million that was in the 2023 Budget.

IMHO, the right time for Mr Thomas to voice his concerns about this Fund and any other government programmes was when the 2023-24 Budget was debated. But of course that did not happen. What he should have also voiced his concerns about is the budgeted annual £150m cashflow deficit - what does Mr Thomas think the IOMG should do to fill this massive financial gap? I hope he will also voice his opinions on this subject.

[Roger Mexico]

2 hours ago, joebean said:

Precisely what I don’t get about Chris Thomas. There is always lots of talk about policy and directions but not much in the way of tangible actions. Here he we have him apparently arguing for policy mandates and alignments of MHKs that are simply not achievable within our current political practices, elections and structures, but I have never heard him suggesting anything different in the way of reforming Isle of Man politics. 

But you're the one saying that those things aren't possible without structural changes, not him.  It's hardly Thomas's fault that he's trying to improve things under the current system, rather than wait till that system alters.

There may well be a number of structural changes that would improve matters (electing LegCo would be an obvious one) but there's a long history of reorganisation being used as a substitute for reform and deckchairs being reshuffled without any improvement except in the number and salaries of their occupants.  Look at the way that the number of civil servants DHSC + Manx Care increased by 30% from 2016 with reorganisation.

[Roger Mexico]

1 minute ago, code99 said:

IMHO, the right time for Mr Thomas to voice his concerns about this Fund and any other government programmes was when the 2023-24 Budget was debated. But of course that did not happen. What he should have also voiced his concerns about is the budgeted annual £150m cashflow deficit - what does Mr Thomas think the IOMG should do to fill this massive financial gap? I hope he will also voice his opinions on this subject.

The trouble is that Ministers can voice their concerns within government (eg in CoMin meetings), but they're bound by CoMin rules not to do so outside that.  So we don't know how much support policies actually - they could pass by 5-4 in CoMin but all 9 members will be obliged to support them publicly.  It also means that something can get through Keys/Tynwald that doesn't in fact have majority support there.

That leads to something that isn't really being discussed much about this CoMin, that there has been a constant split in it, which also happens to be geographic.  The oldest division in Manx politics is between Northside and Southside as split by the chain of hills that runs NE to SW across the Island.  The Northside sheadings are Glenfaba, Michael and Ayre; the Southside Garff, Middle and Rushen.  Nowadays the Keys constituencies still relate to the traditional boundaries, with Peel and Glenfaba, Ayre and Michael and Ramsey being Northside[1] and the other nine Southside.

Now five of the six Northside MHKs are in CoMin and that's been the situation since the start with Johnson replacing Crookall.  More interestingly they are all now in what you might call the admin side of government: Chief Minister, Cabinet Office, Treasury, DfE and DHSC (now that running health is done by Manx Care).  There is a majority there in CoMin and control over the finances, but none of them are actually in charge of delivering much in the way of services that people need and use.

In contrast the other four CoMin members have to deliver the things that matter and seem to be keen on running that particular Department.  Poole-Wilson clearly has a reforming agenda in the legal area, though whether she will be allowed to deliver it is another matter.  Edge's concentration on Education was clear from the start.  Anyone who has talked to Barber knows her interest in a number of the areas that DEFA covers and Thomas specifically wanted to serve as DoI Minister.

There's clearly a tension there, especially when Cannan's government  doesn't really seem to have much of a plan except to give money their mates and hope something turns up.  Those having to make cutbacks in services and increase charges will get very frustrated, especially if they get all the blame for decisions forced on them.

 

[1]  Technically Ramsey south of the river was in Maughold/Garff.

[ADELE]

He has increased the road tax when a lot of people are struggling and messed with airport parking changing his mind about time limits before the new rules were issued despite people being already wound up about the hit and miss air travel situation.   I would say his track record is rather unimpressive.   Not a team player.   He does not seem to understand when you join a club you abide by its rules and if you are elected onto the committee you abide by the decisions made by the majority.    He may have been a fit for a member of Douglas City Council they seem to be more maverick by nature.