FactFile

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Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Isle of Man

Dependency status:
British crown dependency

Government type:
parliamentary democracy

Capital:
Douglas

Administrative divisions:
there are 24 local authorities each with its own elections

National holiday:
Tynwald Day, 5 July

Constitution:
unwritten; note - The Isle of Man Constitution Act, 1961, does not embody the Manx Constitution

Legal system:
English common law and Manx statute

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state:
Lord of Mann Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Lieutenant Governor Adam WOOD (since 7 April 2011)

head of government:
Chief Minister Allan BELL (since 11 October 2011)

cabinet:
Council of Ministers

elections:
the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch for a five-year term; the Chief Minister is elected by the Tynwald; election last held 14 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011)

election results:
House of Keys speaker Tony BROWN elected chief minister by the Tynwald

Legislative branch:
bicameral Tynwald consists of the Legislative Council (a 11-member body composed of the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, a nonvoting attorney general, and 8 others named by the House of Keys) and the House of Keys (24 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:
House of Keys - last held 23 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2011)

election results:
House of Keys - percent of vote by party - N/A; seats by party - Man Labor Party 1, Liberal Vannin Party 2, independents 21

Judicial branch:
High Court of Justice (justices are appointed by the Lord Chancellor of England on the nomination of the lieutenant governor)

Political parties and leaders:
Alliance for Progressive Government; Liberal Vannin Party [Peter KARRAN]; Man Labor Party; Man Nationalist Party (Mec Vannin) [Bernard MOFFATT] note: most members sit as independents

Military - note:
defence is the responsibility of the UK

Flag description:
red with the Three Legs of Man emblem (Trinacria), in the centre; the three legs are joined at the thigh and bent at the knee; in order to have the toes pointing clockwise on both sides of the flag, a two-sided emblem is used

(Last updated for 2009 (2012 checked)