The Chief Minister says he has created the new minister without portfolio role to help him as he deals with the Manx Care overspend.

The new ministerial role has come under scrutiny with questions raised over why such an appointment has been made.

During the House of Keys sitting last week Tim Crookall had to defend his new role as Minister without portfolio following his move from the Department of Infrastructure as part of a recent reshuffle by Chief Minister Alfred Cannan.

His new role was further questioned during this week’s Tynwald sitting with Mr Cannan being scrutinised.

Ramsey MHK Lawrie Hooper asked the Chief Minister what the role and remit is of the Minister without Portfolio, whether he will sit on any Council of Ministers sub-committees and what budget and staff have been assigned to him.

Mr Cannan said: ‘I created this role last month to provide support for me in key priority areas which are driving the programme to realise £10m of efficiency and savings, supporting external relations where appropriate and helping me oversee the delivery of the Island Plan and development of the next version.’

Mr Hooper asked the Chief Minister how he has coped without such support over the past three years.

Mr Cannan responded by saying: ‘Dealing with a £16m overspend in health has required me to devote considerable personal attention to the matter and I am delighted to now be working collegiately with the new minister in tackling this £16m overspend.

‘The additional support for me is absolutely necessary to tackle this overspend and if we can get this down by millions of pounds then we will have made a significant contribution to helping the sustainability of our reserves.’

Mr Hooper said it appears Mr Crookall is having to do the Chief Minister’s job while the Chief Minister goes off to do the Health Minister’s job.

But Mr Cannan responded by saying: ‘Extensive resources have been needed to tackle this matter and to also address the very serious matter of ensuring that the provision of our health service takes place within the allocated budget.

‘We need to do our very best to ensure we prioritise those services and make sure the people of this island get the very best in healthcare.

‘It is a very serious matter which is why we are devoting so many resources to it.’

He said no budget or staff have been assigned to the new ministerial role.

The ministerial shake-up, announced last week, saw several changes within the Council of Ministers.

Douglas South MHK Claire Christian now heads the Department of Health and Social Care, while Douglas North MHK David Ashford takes a position in the Cabinet Office.

Rushen MHK Michelle Haywood has assumed the role of Infrastructure Minister, replacing Mr Crookall.