Sewerage, population, GP appointments and housing among the west's top issues for CoMin

Residents made full use of Treasury's presence

The second in a series of 'Listening to You' events took place last night at Queen Elizabeth II High School in Peel, with a similar turnout of around 100 people.

Residents in the west of the Isle of Man took the chance to put questions directly to the Council of Ministers and hear more about the work government is doing to resolve those issues.

Issues raised throughout included sewerage works, population rebalancing, a lack of available GP appointments and how government intends to restore public trust.

Concerns were raised by the Council of Ministers over an air of negativity across the board which was largely put down to increased use of social media.

Housing saw numerous queries raised, ranging from access to public sector properties, how best to tackle empty houses and affordable housing.

Residents were told much of the work to answer those questions lies in a document which is due to be published soon.

Government admits restoring public trust will take time and the chief minister acknowledges more effective communication as a key part of that process.

Despite disappointment over a lack of Treasury representation in the South's event, Dr Alex Allinson and his top civil servants were in attendance and residents appeared to be making full use of that presence.

State pensions, VAT, pressures on hospitality, minimum wage increases and the living wage formed some of the worries flagged to him.

He told Manx Radio, as part of the renewed Island Plan, financial responsibility forms the backbone of the administration: