The parliament of the Isle of Man, the Tynwald, has launched a public consultation on a bill to remove the vote, but not the voice, of the Bishop of Sodor and Man from the upper chamber, the Legislative Council.
A private member’s bill proposed by Lawrie Hooper in the House of Keys, the lower chamber of the island parliament, would remove the bishop’s right to vote in the upper house, but would permit him to lead prayers at the beginnings of parliamentary sessions and to speak on issues before the Council.
Residents of the Isle of Man have been asked to respond by mid February to the proposed legislation. In its first reading in the House of Keys, supporters of the bill said the removing the bishop as an ex officio member of the Council was in accord with modern democratic principles. Member of the House of Keys Stu Peters told the chamber the “bishop should stand for election” like any other candidate.
Member of the House of Keys Clair Christian opposed the bill saying it would “disenfranchise” the bishopk remove a unique moral and ethical voice when considering legislation, and could lead ot the dissolution of the dioese and its merger with another diocese in the Province of York.
The see of Sodor and Man is currently vacant, but the Archbishop of York, the Most Rev. Stephen Cottrell, the metropolitan archbishop for the island, wrote last month to the members of the House of Keys urging them to defeat the bill.
“If the role of the bishop in Tynwald were to change, this would inevitably raise other questions about the status of the future of the diocese itself,” the archbishop wrote.
“I am also concerned that this issue has been raised again, so recently after Tynwald Court rejected it, and at a time when the diocese is in vacancy. I am afraid I cannot think this is a simple coincidence.
“The governance arrangements of the Island are hugely important but I wonder whether this is a priority for the people you serve at a time when so many other challenges face us both locally and nationally.
“I realise it is not really my place to interfere in these matters but I would urge you to consider carefully making constitutional changes at such a time and what the unintended consequences might be.
“I also believe that such a change should not happen without wider public consultation. I would be happy to facilitate such consultation within our parishes if that would be helpful,” the archbishop said.
