Perspective has largely been a permanent fixture on Manx Radio since 10 February 2019. With the exception of a break from the middle of March this year, it’s been broadcast in the old Sunday Opinion slot from midday until one every Sunday. After almost 21 months, Dollin Mercer reflects on some highlights over more than 70 episodes. We hear extracts from programmes about: cannabis laws, integrated care, 'pub politics', the language learning decline, the chief constable's view on Manx policing, experiences of former policemen, women of sport in Mann, cruise tourism, 'traversing Ellan Vannin', and Chris Killip...

Perspective - Manx Radio

The 'Best of' Perspective

The men at the forefront of the Island's farming and food production sectors were under the spotlight at a Tynwald committee hearing last week. DEFA Minister Geoffrey Boot and his department’s CEO, Richard Lole, outlined what they’re doing to try and help, protect, and regulate some of the Island’s oldest industries in the wake of massive external pressures and change. Of course – Brexit and Covid-19 were inevitable talking points. The Environment and Infrastructure Policy Review Committee is made up of Rob Mercer MLC, plus MHKs Clare Barber and its chair, Chris Robertshaw.

Food, farming and fishing in a future world

This week, world-renowned photographer Chris Killip passed away aged 74. Born and raised on the Isle of Man, Killip has been hailed as being among the influential generation of British documentary photographers of the 1970s. He also lectured at Harvard University as Professor of Visual and Environmental Studies, from 1991-2017. In this programme, we hear some tributes to him, including from his brother. We also listen back to a radio appearance from 8 May 2016, where he appeared on 'Sunday Opinion' with the late Roger Watterson after the launch of an exhibition of Killip's work at the Manx Museum - 'Isle of Man Revisited'. CHRIS KILLIP BIOGRAPHY Born in Douglas in the Isle of Man in 1946, he left school at age 16 and joined the only four star hotel on the Island as a trainee hotel manager. In June 1964 he decided to pursue photography full-time and became a beach photographer in order to earn enough money to leave the Isle of Man. In October 1964 he was hired as an assistant to the leading London advertising photographer, Adrian Flowers. In 1969, after seeing his very first exhibition of photography, at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, he decided to return to photograph in the Isle of Man. He worked in his father's pub (The Bowling Green Hotel) at night, returning to London on occasion to print his work. In 1972 he received one of the commissions from The Arts Council of Great Britain to photograph Huddersfield and Bury St Edmunds for the exhibition Two Views. In 1975 he moved to live in Newcastle upon Tyne on a two-year fellowship as the Northern Arts Photography Fellow. He was a founder member, and exhibition curator and advisor of Side Gallery, Newcastle upon Tyne, as well as the director, from 1977-79. He continued to live in Newcastle and photographed throughout the North East of England. In 1989 he was commissioned by Pirelli UK to photograph the workforce at their tire factory in Burton on Trent. In 1989 he received the Henri Cartier Bresson Award and was invited in 1991 as a Visiting Lecturer, to the Department of Visual and Environmental Studies at Harvard University, Boston USA. In 1994 he was made a tenured professor and was department chair from 1994-98. He retired from Harvard University in 2017. A retrospective exhibition of his work took place at the Folkwang Museum, Essen, then travelled to LE BAL, Paris, and on to the Reina Sofia Museum, Madrid. His work is represented in the exhibition Ideas of the North at the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead and his exhibition The Last Ships was held at the Laing Gallery in Newcastle.

"He just sought to try and find a kind of truth that he could reveal"

6:16 - Yvonne Cresswell, Social History Curator at Manx National Heritage 24:39 - Anthony Bernbaum, the Peartree Collection - London 30:42 - Chris Hobdell and Mary Hobdell, The Archibald Knox Forum There are plans gathering pace for an ambitious, multi-faceted, world-leading celebration of the life and work of Archibald Knox on the Isle of Man. A timeless talent and a national treasure, the versatile creative from Cronkbourne village in Braddan remains 'totally undervalued', according to the forum set up in his name. In this episode of Perspective, we hear all about the man himself - perhaps best known as an Art Nouveau Artist and Designer for Liberty and Co. in London - but so much more than that. We hear about proposals by the Archibald Knox Forum for a project in four or five years’ time, to a scale never seen before. We hear from Yvonne Cresswell, Curator of Social History at Manx National Heritage. We also hear from Anthony Bernbaum of the Peartree Collection, a director of the former Archibald Knox Society, an international expert and a dealer of Knox works in London.

A timeless talent, a national treasure and a record-breaking exhibition

1:36 - Roger Tomlinson's introduction, from the Positive Action Group 7:55 - Douglas East MHK Chris Robertshaw begins his speech 59:00 - Roger Tomlinson hosts the audience Q&A session "Towards a Government Which Serves the People." That was the title, as Chris Robertshaw MHK gave a public talk at a meeting of the Positive Action Group this week, twelve months before a general election in which he does not plan to stand again. He looked at what structural changes he felt must be made, in order for government to be 'more responsive and agile' in a 'rapidly changing world'. He said political will is what's stopping positive progress, and that wholesale reform of government would require a change of chief minister. In this programme, we hear what Mr Robertshaw had to say - in his speech - in full. There was also a question and answer session afterwards.

"Towards a Government Which Serves the People"

What does the Attorney General do? Who is he accountable to? How is his work scrutinised? Should his role be split? Or the responsibilities reallocated? And could we soon see a Minister of Justice on the Isle of Man? These are all themes that were discussed in a public oral evidence session of a Tynwald committee this week. The current Attorney General - Mr John Quinn QC - appeared before the Constitutional and Legal Affairs and Justice Committee. That's made up of Jane Poole-Wilson MLC, who is chair, plus MHKs Lawrie Hooper and Chris Robertshaw, and the Clerk of Tynwald, Roger Phillips. The panel last met with the Attorney General in November last year, to discuss the role, the workload, and what it could look like in the future. This time round, Mrs Poole-Wilson wanted to start with the matter of scrutiny of the role of Attorney General here. And specifically, how far his personal work or personal advice ought to be scrutinised.

A revised role for the Attorney General?

With students beginning to depart Manx shores to resume, or begin their studies at university, how are they feeling? Dollin Mercer is joined live in the studio by Education Minister Dr Alex Allinson, Cat Woolley of the Manx Students' Union, and special guest producer William King. Throughout the programme, we hear from three students with contrasting experiences already - Elliott Callow, Jacob Halstein and Fraser Rowe. We also hear a few words from Professor Julia Buckingham CBE, who is the President of Universities UK - a group which represents all of the universities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Going to University in an uncertain world

A Tynwald committee has set out to gather evidence about how the Island's tourism sector might look - or could look - in the future. Spearheaded by former hotelier Chris Robertshaw MHK, it's looking to bring a report to the November sitting of Tynwald, which will lead to a general debate about how the industry should proceed in years to come. His committee has been speaking to those at the forefront of the industry this week. Alongside fellow Tynwald members Jason Moorhouse and Kerry Sharpe, Mr Robertshaw interviewed the leaders of the Department for Enterprise, and also a consultant employed by government to investigate the current health of the sector. Andrew Keeling is from Hotel Solutions, a hotel development consultancy. He's produced a report, called 'Isle of Man Accommodation Futures', compiling evidence over several years. Mr Keeling believes the Isle of Man needs to 'get ahead of the competition' by investing in improved tourist accommodation. The Island's rival destinations, like Jersey and Guernsey, have a greater luxury accommodation offering, he says, and he thinks government should invest in eco-friendly tourism, and capitalise on the Biosphere status. Mr Keeling also believes the Island needs more non-serviced accommodation. In this episode, we hear what the enterprise leaders had to say, and then speak to Mr Robertshaw directly to reflect on everything the committee heard.

The future of tourism and visitor accommodation on the Isle of Man

At the July sitting of Tynwald, Policy and Reform Minister Ray Harmer promised to have the terms of a new regulatory agreement with Manx Gas ready by the time politicians come back from their summer break. The previous agreement expired at the beginning of this year. So how did we get here? What will we see in October? And above all, what does all of this mean for gas customers on the Isle of Man? Dollin Mercer was joined live in the studio by three people with an active interest in this saga. Barry Murphy has led a public campaign for a better deal for gas consumers on the Isle of Man. He's been the lynchpin of the vocal, and visible demonstrations over a number of years now, and he's also behind the lobby forum 'IOM GAS CUSTOMERS WORKING GROUP' on Facebook. Douglas Central MHK Chris Thomas is the former Policy and Reform Minister. He oversaw government's negotiations with the organisation until he was dismissed from the Council of Ministers in May. Mr Thomas' successor Ray Harmer was invited, but had a long-standing prior engagement. Joining the panel instead was Lawrie Hooper MHK, who is a current member of the Cabinet Office.

Manx Gas - with a new deal looming, how did we get here?

On the programme this week, Dollin Mercer was joined in the studio by the Isle of Man's two newest members of the House of Keys. Voters in Douglas South headed to the polling stations on Thursday, to elect not one, but two new representatives for the constituency. Polls opened at eight o'clock in the morning for a unique by-election which was called following the passing of Bill Malarkey in February and the resignation of Kate Costain. There were ten candidates for those two spots - eight independents, one from Liberal Vannin and one from the Isle of Man Green Party. Turnout was around 37%, with 1,789 votes cast. Topping the polls, with 930 votes, was local businesswoman Claire Christian. Joining her in Tynwald will be former pilot Paul Quine, who gathered the support of 469 constituents.

A unique by-election, and two new MHKs for Douglas South

On the programme this week, we listen back to coverage of the ‘major incident’ in the village last October. “It’s not going to be swept under the carpet. We will be tackling this head on to make sure that a) it doesn’t happen again and b) lessons are learnt” - Chief Minister Howard Quayle. But have lessons been learnt? Overnight on Wednesday, 12 August and Thursday 13, some residents in the Glen Road area were hit by more damage, following a heavy downpour which saw more than 40mm of rainfall in under two hours. It came in the same week work got underway on replacing a culvert section in the river there, to try and prevent water from building up and overflowing. One listener said: "there should be a public enquiry into the running of the Department of Infrastructure. The people making decisions at the top are untouchable, and costing the tax payer millions in mismanagement."

Flood, flood, flood - déjà vu in Laxey

For an island of less than 600 square kilometres, getting from A to B is a regular source of frustration for many. But what are politicians doing to change how we travel? And especially in a post-lockdown world, what could be done differently? Or should be done differently, for that matter? Dollin Mercer is joined in the studio by Infrastructure Minister Tim Baker and Middle MHK Bill Shimmins to talk about how we get around. The topics covered include active travel, public transport, heritage railways and driving. Some comments from listeners: "We commute to Douglas via the steam railway which is the same travelling time as the bus and much more pleasant - no parking problems or cost. Thank goodness for the Victorians. Where would the island be today?" "Mr Shimmins is a fanatical cyclist. Future generations will say how short-sighted not to prepare the railway tracks for future rail use." "Things would have been different had we not had the incredible summer this year." "Something needs to be done with the very, very dangerous Victoria Road/Governor's Dip intersection. Who is responsible for such dangerous work?" "I think all bicycles must have a bell, and cyclists must use these with shared walking and cycling paths. Cyclists are travelling at fast speeds and often walkers are unaware of them approaching." "Where cycle lanes have been installed, e.g. Gansey, cyclists do not use them. This week there were 22 cyclists on the road, one on the cycle way."

Traversing Ellan Vannin

This week, it was announced the Bunscoill Ghaelgagh is 'going mainstream'. From September, it’ll be a ‘fully maintained’ government school, for the first time in its 19-year history. In this programme, we hear all about the truly unique place of learning – its past, and its future. Dollin Mercer speaks to Education Minister Dr Alex Allinson about the school's transition. But first, he's joined in the studio by two people who have been instrumental in the life of the school to date. Annie Kissack has been a teacher at the Bunscoill since the beginning. Phil Gawne is the Finance Director at Mooinjer Veggey – the charity which runs the school.

Bunscoill “has made Manx a living language again”

In the July sitting, Tynwald failed to agree on a move to change the speed limit policy on the Island’s roads. Politicians weren’t discussing a national speed limit on this occasion, though, but specifically what the maximum should be on particular types of roadway. The topic will return to parliament in October. We then heard a motorist was recorded going through St Mark’s at 90mph – three times the limit there. So what should the speed limit be? What roads should it apply to? How do we enforce it? What difference does it make? And above all... how do we improve road safety? Dollin Mercer sifts through the arguments – on both sides of the debate.

Speed Limits – a well-trodden path

Personalities, profiles, pastimes, past times, points of view & possibilities. Dollin Mercer presents your view of the world we live in - on the Isle of Man of the 21st Century

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Perspective - Manx Radio

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