Chief minister vows government reform after medic's sacking

A ruling that found the Isle of Man's top medic was unfairly sacked must lead to "fundamental and wide ranging reform", the chief minister has said.

Alfred Cannan said the findings had created "deep discomfort" for the public sector and "damaged confidence" in the government.

Reviews of the performance of the public sector will now be carried out.

Mr Cannan made the comments in the wake of an employment tribunal involving medical director Rosalind Ranson.

The tribunal ruled Dr Ranson had been unfairly sacked after raising concerns that expert advice about coronavirus was not reaching senior politicians during the pandemic.

The findings concluded Department of Health and Social Care chief executive Kathryn Magson had blocked access to politicians, and former health minister David Ashford had been over-reliant on the information she had provided to him.

Mr Cannan told Tynwald reviews would be carried out over the efficiency of the government's office of human resources and the role and responsibilities of the chief secretary, the island's highest ranking civil servant.

It was announced on Monday that chief secretary Will Greenhow had taken early retirement after 12 years in the post.

Non-executive ministerial advisers will be appointed to departmental boards to give politicians advice, but decisions will be taken by political members alone.

The code of conduct for public servants will also be reviewed and updates to whistleblowing policies will be accelerated.

Declining to comment on the specifics of the tribunal findings, Mr Cannan said they had "made uncomfortable reading for many people" and had "regrettably not reflected well on the professionalism of our public service".

He said: "We need to make changes to government. Structural changes, cultural changes and organisational changes because we cannot retain the status quo."

In response to the chief minister's statement, Claire Christian MHK said the current administration would be "defined by the results of the action taken to drive bad culture out from within the ranks of our civil service and politics".

"We need to shake this tree once and for all for bad apples and show the people of the Isle of Man that this government knows the true meaning of integrity," she added.

Tim Glover MHK said it was important to emphasise that "most civil servants are very conscientious and hard-working and very diligent", but raised concerns that the Council of Ministers was "going into this not unblemished themselves".

He said: "There used to be a culture of politicians doing the right thing and stepping down when they became the story.

"Surely for this review to have more chance of success you need a clean sheet?"

Welcoming the reviews, Tim Johnson MHK said the chief minister had "the opportunity to do something fundamental" by putting in place "the culture, mechanisms and policies to ensure individuals across the public sector have the confidence to speak out safely about all questionable practice and procedure".

Calling for retrospective exit interviews for staff who have left the public sector, Michelle Haywood MHK added that whistleblowing was "often a courageous last resort for those who have no other recourse to any other actions, and their convictions drive them down a route that will ultimately end their career".

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