The select committee examining the relationship between the Steam Packet and government has recommended it be turned over to a statutory board.
Since the government bought the world’s oldest ferry operator it has been run, at a profit, as an arms-length company within the framework of the Sea Services Agreement.
The committee, chaired by Jason Moorhouse, has concluded that the current SSA was created as a “negotiated outcome” between the company and the government but that may not have been the best outcome.
It said: “When the company was brought into government ownership, there was no consideration of whether the Sea Services Agreement, based on the previous Linkspan User Agreements, was the best approach to deliver social and economic value from the service.
“This was a missed opportunity to reset the relationship between the government and the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company and to ensure that sea services supported the socio-economic wellbeing of the island.”
The report goes on to suggest, but not truly conclude, that while the company generates profit, this alone does not ensure it meets the broader needs of the island.
Recommendations in Full
The committee recommends that:
That the Department for Enterprise should establish a working group to develop a new framework for sea services. The working group should include representatives from the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, the Treasury, the Department of Infrastructure, the Department for Enterprise, and the Department for Environment, Food and Agriculture, and may include other relevant bodies. The working group should develop a new sea services framework by the end of 2025.
That, when developing the new framework for sea services, the working group established by the Department for Enterprise should ensure that the framework a) provides services that support the Island’s socio-economic needs, and b) holds the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company to the same high standards expected of all public services. The working group should take into account the findings of this Report, the evidence published with this Report, the headings set out at Annex 1 of this Report, and any comments made in the debate on this Report.
a) That the Council of Ministers should consider the practicalities of transitioning the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company to a Statutory Board; and report back to Tynwald by the end of 2025.
or, in the alternative, if the above Recommendation fails
b) That, as part of its ongoing work on developing a policy on Government-owned companies, the Treasury should consider how to enhance its oversight of the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company; and report back to Tynwald by the end of 2025.
5 Comments