Isle of Man Fact File
 

Introduction

Isle of Man
Background:

Part of the Norwegian Kingdom of the Hebrides until the 13th century when it was ceded to Scotland, the isle came under the British crown in 1765. Current concerns include reviving the almost extinct Manx Gaelic language. Isle of Man is a British crown dependency, but is not part of the UK.

Geography

Isle of Man
Location:

Western Europe, island in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland

Geographic coordinates:

54 15 N, 4 30 W

Map references:

Europe

Area:

total: 572 sq km
land: 572 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly more than three times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:

0 km

Coastline:

160 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm

Climate:

temperate; cool summers and mild winters; overcast about one-third of the time

Terrain:

hills in north and south bisected by central valley

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Irish Sea 0 m
highest point: Snaefell 621 m

Natural resources:

none

Land use:

arable land: 9%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 91% (permanent pastures, forests, mountain, and heathland) (2002)

Irrigated land:

0 sq km

Natural hazards:

NA

Environment - current issues:

waste disposal (both household and industrial); transboundary air pollution

Geography - note:

one small islet, the Calf of Man, lies to the southwest, and is a bird sanctuary

People

Isle of Man
Population:

75,441 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 17.3% (male 6,669/female 6,350)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 24,884/female 24,678)
65 years and over: 17% (male 5,197/female 7,663) (2006 est.)

Median age:

total: 39.6 years
male: 38.4 years
female: 41 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:

0.52% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:

11.05 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:

11.19 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:

5.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 5.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.8 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 78.49 years
male: 75.14 years
female: 82.02 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:

1.65 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

NA

Nationality:

noun: Manxman (men), Manxwoman (women)
adjective: Manx

Ethnic groups:

Manx (Norse-Celtic descent), Briton

Religions:

Anglican, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Society of Friends

Languages:

English, Manx Gaelic

Literacy:

definition: NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA%

Government

Isle of Man
Country name:

conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Isle of Man

Dependency status:

British crown dependency

Government type:

parliamentary democracy

Capital:

Douglas

Administrative divisions:

none; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 24 local authorities each with its own elections dennis

Independence:

none (British crown dependency)

National holiday:

Tynwald Day, 5 July

Constitution:

unwritten; note - The Isle of Man Constitution Act of 1961 does not embody the unwritten Manx Constitution

Legal system:

English common law and Manx statute

Suffrage:

16 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: Lord of Mann Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Lieutenant Governor Sir Paul K. HADDACKS (since 17 October 2005)
head of government: Chief Minister Donald GELLING (since 14 December 2004)
cabinet: Council of Ministers
elections: the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch for a five-year term; the chief minister is elected by the Tynwald; election last held 14 December 2004 (next to be held December 2006)
election results: Donald GELLING elected chief minister by the Tynwald; note - Richard CORKILL resigned 2 December 2004

Legislative branch:

bicameral Tynwald consists of the Legislative Council (an 11-member body composed of the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, a nonvoting attorney general, and eight others named by the House of Keys) and the House of Keys (24 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Keys - last held 22 November 2001 (next to be held November 2006)
election results: House of Keys - percent of vote by party - Man Labor Party 17.3%, Alliance for Progressive Government 14.6%; seats by party - Man Labor Party 2, Alliance for Progressive Government 3, independents 19

Judicial branch:

High Court of Justice (justices are appointed by the Lord Chancellor of England on the nomination of the lieutenant governor)

Political parties and leaders:

Alliance for Progressive Government; Man Labor Party; Man Nationalist Party
note: most members sit as independents

Political pressure groups and leaders:

none

International organization participation:

UPU

Diplomatic representation in the US:

none (British crown dependency)

Diplomatic representation from the US:

none (British crown dependency)

Flag description:

red with the Three Legs of Man emblem (Trinacria), in the center; the three legs are joined at the thigh and bent at the knee; in order to have the toes pointing clockwise on both sides of the flag, a two-sided emblem is used

Economy

Isle of Man
Economy - overview:

Offshore banking, manufacturing, and tourism are key sectors of the economy. The government offers incentives to high-technology companies and financial institutions to locate on the island; this has paid off in expanding employment opportunities in high-income industries. As a result, agriculture and fishing, once the mainstays of the economy, have declined in their shares of GDP. Trade is mostly with the UK. The Isle of Man enjoys free access to EU markets.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$2.113 billion (2003 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):

NA

GDP - real growth rate:

NA%

GDP - per capita (PPP):

$28,500 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 1%
industry: 13%
services: 86% (2000 est.)

Labor force:

39,690 (2001)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture, forestry and fishing 3%, manufacturing 11%, construction 10%, transport and communication 8%, wholesale and retail distribution 11%, professional and scientific services 18%, public administration 6%, banking and finance 18%, tourism 2%, entertainment and catering 3%, miscellaneous services 10%

Unemployment rate:

0.6% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:

NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

3.6% (March 2003 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $485 million
expenditures: $463 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est.)

Agriculture - products:

cereals, vegetables; cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry

Industries:

financial services, light manufacturing, tourism

Industrial production growth rate:

3.2% (FY96/97)

Exports:

$NA

Exports - commodities:

tweeds, herring, processed shellfish, beef, lamb

Exports - partners:

UK (2004)

Imports:

$NA

Imports - commodities:

timber, fertilizers, fish

Imports - partners:

UK (2004)

Debt - external:

$NA

Economic aid - recipient:

$NA

Currency (code):

British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Manx pound

Currency code:

GBP

Exchange rates:

Manx pounds per US dollar - 0.55 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001)

Fiscal year:

1 April - 31 March

Communications

Isle of Man
Telephones - main lines in use:

51,000 (1999)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

NA

Telephone system:

general assessment: NA
domestic: landline, telefax, mobile cellular telephone system
international: fiber-optic cable, microwave radio relay, satellite earth station, submarine cable

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios:

NA

Television broadcast stations:

0 (receives broadcasts from the UK and satellite) (1999)

Televisions:

27,490 (1999)

Internet country code:

.im

Internet hosts:

264 (2005)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

NA

Internet users:

NA

Transportation

Isle of Man
Airports:

1 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2005)

Railways:

total: 61 km (35 km electrified) (2003)

Roadways:

total: 800 km
paved: 800 km (1999)

Merchant marine:

total: 292 ships (1000 GRT or over) 7,909,896 GRT/13,339,460 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 40, cargo 60, chemical tanker 52, combination ore/oil 1, container 16, liquefied gas 35, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 67, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 9, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 5
foreign-owned: 205 (Denmark 49, Estonia 2, France 2, Germany 55, Greece 43, Hong Kong 1, Iran 1, Italy 7, Japan 4, Monaco 1, Netherlands 2, Norway 23, Singapore 8, Sweden 1, Turkey 3, US 3)
registered in other countries: 10 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Cambodia 1, Liberia 5, NZ 1, Panama 2) (2005)

Ports and terminals:

Castletown, Douglas, Ramsey

Military

Isle of Man
Military - note:

defense is the responsibility of the UK

Transnational Issues

Isle of Man
Disputes - international:

none

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