Tynwald
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Tynwald (Tinvaal in Manx) is the bicameral legislature of the Isle of Man (Ellan Vannin). It consists of the directly elected House of Keys (Kiare as Feed) and the indirectly chosen Legislative Council (Yn Choonseil Slattyssagh). The Houses sit jointly on Tynwald Day (Laa Tinvaal) in St John's (Balley Keeill Eoin), and on other occasions in Douglas (Doolish). Otherwise, the two Houses sit separately, with the House of Keys originating most legislation, and the Legislative Council acting as a revising chamber.
The name Tynwald, like the Icelandic Þingvellir, is derived from the Old Norse word 'Þingvǫll' meaning the meeting place of the assembly, the field of the thing. When Tynwald meets annually in St John's (normally on 5 July) at an open air ceremony on Tynwald Hill, the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man presides, unless the Queen as Lord of Mann or a member of the Royal Family representing her is present. Here, all laws are promulgated and special Petitions are received. If an Act of Tynwald is not promulgated at St. John's within 18 months of passage, it becomes null and void.
Acts of the UK Parliament that are extended to the Isle of Man do not require promulgation to become effective law, but their commencement date is set for the next Tynwald Day. See Smith and Sheridan, The United Kingdom: the Development of its Laws and Constitutions 1955, Stevens, London, page 1145
While Tynwald sits in Douglas, which occurs once a month from October to July, the President of Tynwald, who is chosen by the other members, presides. In the joint session:
- Members of each house formally sign bills
- Notice of Royal approval from the Lord of Mann is received
- Questions may be put to officers of Government
- Special Resolutions authorizing taxes are made
- Delegated legislation made by Government officers may be approved or annulled
- Petitions may be presented
- The Chief Minister is appointed
- Other important public business is conducted.
When Tynwald votes while meeting jointly, each House votes separately. If a majority of each House approves, the motion is carried. If the Council vote ties, then the President of Tynwald casts the deciding vote. However, if the Keys approves a motion but the Council disapproves, then the question can be put again at a different sitting. In this case, the vote is determined by a majority of all the members of Tynwald. If this occurs, the Keys, with its larger size, is likely to prevail.
Normally, both houses of Tynwald must pass a bill before it goes to the Lieutenant Governor, representing the Lord of Mann, for formal assent. But if the Council rejects a bill or amends it against the Keys' wishes, the Keys has the power to repass the same bill, when the Council's disapproval is ignored and the bill presented to the Lieutenant Governor for Royal assent.
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[edit] History of Tynwald
Tynwald is usually said to be the oldest Parliament in continuous existence in the world, having been established by 979 (though its roots may go back to the late 800s as the thing of Scandinavian raiders not yet permanently resident on the island) and having continued to be held since that time without interruption.
There are other parliaments which are undoubtedly older but these have not had a continuous existence. The Icelandic Alþingi was established in 930 but abolished in 1800 and not refounded until 1845. The Faorese Logting is believed to be the oldest of that three, established as early as in the 9th century and recorded to exist as annual assembly in the 10th century. San Marino also claims that its parliament dates to 301 AD, making it several centuries earlier than the claims of the Norse assemblies.
However, the vericity of Tynwald's claim to continuous existence as a legislative body is disputed. From the 11th to the 15th Centuries, Tynwald was arguably a judicial court and did not fulfil functions of creating legislation. During the 15th and 16th Centuries the process of creating legislation varied between occasions and Tynwald does not appear to have functioned as a single legislative body during that period either.
Following the revestment of the Lordship of Mann with the British Crown in 1765, a Royal Commission on the Isle of Man was formed in 1791 to examine the governance and finances of the island.
The Commissioners reported back to Whitehall in 1792, stating that "The laws and ordinances that were enacted during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries appear by the Manks Statute Book to have been prescribed by such different powers, or combination of powers, that as precedents of the exercise of legislative authority they can have but little weight." The Commission noted that only subsequent to this period was the practice of the Council and Twenty-four Keys meeting together to enact legislation established as 'the more regular mode of legislating'.
The Royal Commission also noted that the earliest insular Manx laws on record dated from 1417 (the first Act on record being a restriction of the powers of the church to offer sanctuary) - this was after the arrival of the Stanley family as Lords of Mann. It also noted that the comprehensive Manx Statute Book dated from the year 1422 onwards. Note that these were not necessarily the earliest laws passed, but those prior to this date were not recorded as Acts of Tynwald. Comparison can be made with other Parliaments in the British Isles of a similar period; the oldest recorded English Act was from 1229, Scotland 1424, and Ireland 1216 - although again there were prior laws that are now merely part of the unwritten common law of each country.
The opening statement of the Statute Book was "Divers Ordinances, Statutes, and Customs, presented, reputed, and used for Laws in the Land of Mann, that were ratified, approved, and confirmed, as well by the Honourable Sir John Stanley, Knight, King and Lord of the same Land, and divers others his Predecessors, as by all Barons, Deemsters, Officers, Tenants, Inhabitants, and Commons of the same Land where the Lord's Right is declared in the following Words" (note that 'divers' is an archic spelling of 'diverse')
Furthermore, the Commissioners' report noted that prior to the revestment, no 'minutes or journals' of the proceedings of the Council or the House of Keys had been kept.
References:
- The Land of Home Rule. Spencer Walpole, 1893
[edit] Proposed changes to Tynwald
As of 2005, the Island's system of government is under review — there are plans to transform the Legislative Council into a directly-elected chamber, echoing the push for reform in the UK's House of Lords and the abolition of indirectly elected Conseillers in Guernsey. To date, no legislation has successfully passed through the House of Keys and given the fact that the issue has been high up the political agenda for over a decade, change does not seem to be forthcoming in the short term. This was reinforced by the political retirement of one of the main proposers of change, Edgar Quine.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Tynwald - The Parliament of the Isle of Man
