Legislative Council of the Isle of Man

Legislative Council Yn Choonceil Slattyssagh
Type
Type	Upper house of the Tynwald
Leadership
President	Laurence Skelly since 20 July 2021
Structure
Seats	11
Political groups	Independent (8)   Ex officio (3)
Elections
Voting system	Indirect election by the House of Keys
Meeting place
Chamber of the Legislative Council, Legislative Buildings, Douglas
Website
www.tynwald.org.im/council

Politics of the Isle of Man
Lord of Mann Charles III Lieutenant governor John Lorimer Deputy governor Andrew Corlett Isle of Man Government Council of Ministers Chief minister Alfred Cannan Departments Statutory Boards Offices Other Agencies Tynwald Act of Tynwald List President of Tynwald Laurence Skelly Legislative Council President President of Tynwald ex officio House of Keys Speaker Juan Watterson Members (MHKs) Officials of state Judiciary Local government Parish captains Elections House of Keys elections Legislative Council elections Keys constituencies Political parties Last Keys election
Other countries
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The Legislative Council (Manx: Yn Choonceil Slattyssagh) is the upper chamber of Tynwald, the legislature of the Isle of Man. The abbreviation "LegCo" is often used.^[1]

It consists of eleven members (MLCs):

• Eight members elected by the House of Keys
• Three ex officio members:
  • President of Tynwald, ex officio President of the Legislative Council (casting vote)
  • Bishop of Sodor and Man
  • Attorney General for the Isle of Man (non-voting)

Historically, most or all elected MLCs were former MHKs, but this practice has now much reduced or ceased.

Formerly, the Lieutenant Governor presided over the Legislative Council and over Tynwald Court (a joint session of the Council and the House of Keys). Now, however, the President of Tynwald, who is chosen by the whole Tynwald for a five-year term, is the ex officio President of the Legislative Council, and presides over both the Legislative Council and Tynwald Court, except that the Lieutenant Governor presides once a year on Tynwald Day.

Furthermore, the Church of England Bishop of Sodor and Man and the Attorney General have seats on the Legislative Council. The Bishop is a voting member, the Attorney General is a non-voting member, and the President has the casting vote.

The Council does not usually originate legislation^{[citation needed]}; most of the time, it reviews draft legislation originating in the House of Keys. However, it is possible for legislation to originate in the Council: a recent example is the Equality Act 2017.^[2][3]