Call for review of ferry firm's arm's length model

Reviewing the arm's length operation of a government-owned ferry firm is among a range of recommendations made by a committee looking at the island's services.

The Tynwald select committee was formed in January to review the Sea Services Agreement (SSA) with the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company.

The panel found there had been a "missed opportunity" to reset the contract between the parties when the ferry firm was bought by the government in 2018.

The committee called for a new sea services framework to be developed for the Isle of Man by the end of 2025, with consideration given to creating it as a statutory board.

The ferry firm is currently run at arms-length by a board of directors, with the Treasury as its only the shareholder.

The current 25-year SSA, drawn up in 2020 and based upon previous linkspan user agreements, includes conditions on fares, routes and the frequency of sailings.

Committee members MHKs Ann Corlett, Jason Moorhouse and Michelle Haywood said they found "no consideration" was given to whether the agreement was the "best approach to deliver social and economic value from the service".

The panel's final evidence was taken in early November, and Haywood was appointed infrastructure minister later that month in a ministerial reshuffle.

The committee's final report, due to be laid before the island's parliament in January, also concluded the Department of Infrastructure had a potential conflict of interest as it was responsible for regulating the agreement and had responsibility for harbours.

It suggested the Department for Enterprise would instead be "best placed" to lead a working group, including treasury, infrastructure and environment departments alongside the ferry firm, to develop a new framework for sea services by the end of next year.

The committee also said while it agreed with the principle of "limited political and government interference in the day-to-day running" of the firm, the "important national strategic infrastructure asset would benefit from greater direct political support".

The Council of Ministers should therefore "consider the practicalities of transitioning the firm into a statutory board", it said.

A Steam Packet spokesman said it could not comment until it had "fully reviewed the findings and their potential impact on our operations", but the firm remained "committed to our role as the island's lifeline".

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