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The President of Tynwald
The President of Tynwald is the Presiding Officer of Tynwald Court and the Legislative Council. The main role of the President is chairing sittings of Tynwald Court and the Legislative Council. Along with the Speaker, the President signs all resolutions of Tynwald, certificates of Royal Assent for the Acts, and certificates of promulgation of the acts on Tynwald Day.
Election of the President
The President is elected by and from amongst the Members of Tynwald, usually at the last sitting of Tynwald before a General Election. Candidates are proposed and seconded by Members. If there is more than one candidate, there is a combined vote of the Keys and the Council. The candidate with the most votes is elected.
Chairing sittings of Tynwald Court and the Legislative Council
The President of Tynwald chairs sittings of Tynwald Court and the Legislative Council. As presiding officer, the President's role is to ensure that business is conducted in an orderly and unbiased manner. In order to do this, the President interprets the rules and conventions of Tynwald Court and the Legislative Council. Many of these rules are described in Standing Orders, the President's interpretation of which is authoritative. The President is assisted in this task by the Clerk of Tynwald and the Clerk of the Legislative Council. The President's role is to be impartial. He has a casting vote in the event of a tie on a division, which by convention is exercised either to remain with the status quo or to allow debate to continue. If there is a tied vote in the Council when sitting in Tynwald Court, the President exercises the casting vote to make the Council decision agree with that of the Keys.
Chairing Standing Committees
The President is the ex officio Chair of a number of Standing Committees.
The President's robes
The President's formal robes were designed especially for the role by the first elected President, Sir Charles Kerruish OBE. They are usually only worn on ceremonial occasions, such as Tynwald Day. The robes are light blue with extensive embroidery depicting various elements of Manx history and culture: Odin's ravens, the crosh vushta, ragwort or cushag, the Three Legs of Man, and a Viking longboat.
History of the role
The President of Tynwald is a relatively recently established role in the long history of Tynwald. The Lieutenant Governor presided over sittings of the Legislative Council until 1980, when the role was replaced by that of the President of the Legislative Council. The Lieutenant Governor continued to preside in Tynwald Court until 1990, when the role of the President of Tynwald was created. The Lieutenant Governor now only presides over the open air sitting of Tynwald at St John's.
Secondary Legislation
Secondary legislation forms a large part of the work of Tynwald Court each month.
There are two types of legislation in the Isle of Man: primary and secondary. Primary legislation is passed as an Act of Tynwald. An Act of Tynwald may contain enabling powers that allow another person or body, usually a Government Minister or Chief Executive, to make other types of legislation. These are known collectively as secondary legislation and individually as statutory documents. Secondary legislation can be used for a wide range of purposes. Often it provides the technical details that make the primary legislation work in practice. A typical example is where primary legislation gives the power for a fee or fine to be charged or a tax to be raised, the amount to be charged will be specified in secondary legislation. Another common example is an Appointed Day Order, which sets the date on which an Act of Tynwald comes into force. UK legislation is usually applied to the Isle of Man by way of secondary legislation. These statutory instruments are known as Orders in Council. Some secondary legislation requires the approval of Tynwald Court before it comes into force, and some does not. The process to be followed is set out in the primary legislation or enabling Act under which the secondary legislation was made.