Claire Christian has been appointed as the new Minister for Health and Social Care, which is one of three new appointments within the Council of Ministers.

Her appointment comes less than a month after she voted in support of a vote of no confidence against Chief Minister Alfred Cannan.

David Ashford also becomes Minister for the Cabinet Office, replacing Kate Lord Brennan who is stepping down to focus on constituency matters, while Dr Michelle Haywood becomes the new Minister for Infrastructure, taking over from Tim Crookall.

Mr Ashford’s appointment marks his political resurrection following his resignation as Treasury Minister in the wake of the Dr Rosalind Ranson affair.

A tribunal found Dr Ranson was unfairly dismissed and criticised Mr Ashford, who was Health Minister at the time, for having been over-reliant on information from the department’s chief executive, although he has always maintained that he had acted appropriately.

The three new ministerial appointments have been made by the Chief Minister Alfred Cannan, changes which he says ‘will reinvigorate the Council of Ministers as it continues to drive delivery of the Island Plan’.

Another change will see Rob Callister serve as Chair of the Public Services Commission and Vice Chair of the Public Sector Pensions Authority, while also joining the Cabinet Office as a political member.

Chief Minister Alfred Cannan said: ‘I welcome Mr Ashford, Ms Christian and Dr Haywood to the Council of Ministers and thank them for stepping forward to serve our island.

‘I would also like to place on record my thanks to Ms Lord-Brennan for her service over the past three years.

‘There remains much work to do in delivering on our mission to build a secure, vibrant and sustainable future for the Isle of Man.

‘I believe these new appointments will reinvigorate the Council of Ministers as we continue to focus on delivering Our Island Plan.’

Claire Christian will take over from the Chief Minister himself as Health Minister, after he took the role on an interim basis following Lawrie Hooper’s sudden resignation in October.

The Chief Minister added: ‘The focus for the Department of Health and Social Care remains firmly on continuing the work of supporting Manx Care in delivering good quality health and care services that are cost effective, delivered within budget, and provide value for money for the Manx public.

‘This is not an easy task, and I am grateful to Ms Christian for stepping forward to serve. Demonstrating the importance of this task to my government, the new DHSC Minister will be supported by David Ashford MHK who has agreed to remain as a political member of the Department.

‘It is my intention that Deputy Chief Minister Jane Poole-Wilson MHK will also join the Department as a political member.

‘Ms Christian will of course have my full support, and I will also remain available to offer any assistance she may require.’

Ms Christian commented: ‘I am looking forward to dealing with some of the challenges currently facing health and social care delivery and welcome the experience that I will also have alongside me.

‘It is important that we take a collaborative approach to realigning the budget with the mandate to Manx Care and that their operating plan is achievable within the allocated financial framework.

‘This will be the key priority over the next few months.’