A debate on the late publishing of a civil service report sparked an unexpectedly tetchy exchange in Tynwald, with Lawrie Minister accused of having been a ‘Minister of Double Standards’.

The Ramsey MHK, who resigned as Health Minister in October, said by law the Public Services Commission is meant to provide an annual report to be laid before Tynwald but this had not happened during the current administration at all.

He had tabled a motion calling for each of the reports for 2022, 2023 and 2024 to be provided to the Chief Minister by December 31 and then laid before the January Tynwald.

Mr Hooper said: ‘This motion on the face of it is very straight forward. I think the government should comply with the law. Let’s jut say the phrase “as soon as practicable” is doing some very heavy lifting.’

New chairman of Public Services Commission (PSC) Rob Callister apologised for the significant delay which he said was the result of the previous chairman carrying out a review of the format and content of the annual reports.

He tabled an amendment pledging that a consolidated report covering 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 should be presented to the Chief Minister by the end of this year while a report for the following year should be provided by February 28 next year, with the two documents laid before Tynwald in January and March respectively.

Previous chair of the PSC Kate Lord Brennan said she had previously explained in the House of Keys the reasons for the delay - when she said she had been given an ‘interminable grilling’ by Mr Hooper.

She claimed the former Health Minister liked to see her ‘cowed and beaten’ over the matter.

Mr Hooper called for Ms Lord-Brennan to withdraw her remarks which he said were as they were ‘quite directly offensive’ and ‘completely out of order’.

She refused but Tynwald president Laurence Skelly allowed her to continue, ruling the comments were a matter of differing opinion rather than unparliamentary language.

‘It’s not a difference of opinion accusing me of persistent and aggressive attitudes,’ countered Mr Hooper.

‘I haven’t accused Mr Hooper of being aggressive,’ replied Ms Lord-Brennan.

She said he had been ‘keen to lecture the court on the black and white of the law’. but accused of him of being in breach statutory requirements during his time as Health Minister, citing the National Health and Care Service Charter which was last published in 2018.

‘There seems to be an element, frankly, verging on double standards. It should have been done. Maybe that’s what the honorable member, the Minister for Double Standards was into,’ she said.

The president warned her to stick to the motion.

Mr Hooper said no services are provided under the Act that brought in the NHS Charter and so it was not appropriate to review a charter that ‘doesn’t apply to anything’.

‘Compliance with the law is relatively straight forward if you understand the law,’ he remarked.

The motion as amended by Mr Callister was carried unanimously.