MAN, ISLE OF
(British crown dependency)
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 588 km2; land area: 588 km2
Comparative area: slightly less than 3.5 times the size of
Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 113 km
Maritime claims:
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: cool summers and mild winters; humid; overcast about half
the time
Terrain: hills in north and south bisected by central valley
Natural resources: lead, iron ore
Land use: arable land NA%; permanent crops NA%; meadows and
pastures NA%; forest and woodland NA%; other NA%; extensive arable land
and forests
Environment: strong westerly winds prevail
Note: located in Irish Sea equidistant from England, Scotland,
and Ireland
PEOPLE
Population: 64,075 (July 1991), growth rate 0.1% (1991)
Birth rate: 11 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 14 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: 4 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 72 years male, 78 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--Manxman, Manxwoman, adjective--Manx
Ethnic divisions: native Manx of Norse-Celtic descent; British
Religion: Anglican, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Baptist,
Presbyterian, Society of Friends
Language: English, Manx Gaelic
Literacy: NA% (male NA%, female NA%) but compulsory education
age 5 to 16
Labor force: 25,864 (1981)
Organized labor: 22 labor unions patterned along British lines
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: none
Type: British crown dependency
Capital: Douglas
Administrative divisions: none (British crown dependency)
Independence: none (British crown dependency)
Constitution: 1961, Isle of Man Constitution Act
Legal system: English law and local statute
National holiday: Tynwald Day, 5 July
Executive branch: British monarch, lieutenant governor, prime
minister, Executive Council (cabinet)
Legislative branch: bicameral Tynwald consists of an upper
house or Legislative Council and a lower house or House of Keys
Judicial branch: High Court of Justice
Leaders:
Chief of State--Lord of Mann Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February
1952), represented by Lieutenant Governor Air Marshal Sir Laurence JONES
(since NA 1990);
Head of Government--President of the Legislative Council Sir
Charles KERRUISH (since NA 1990)
Political parties and leaders: there is no party system and
members sit as independents
Suffrage: universal at age 21
Elections:
House of Keys--last held in 1986 (next to be held 1991);
results--percent of vote NA;
seats--(24 total) independents 24
Communists: probably none
Member of: none
Diplomatic representation: none (British crown dependency)
Flag: 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
Overview: Offshore banking, manufacturing, and tourism are key
sectors of the economy. The government's policy of offering incentives to
high-technology companies and financial institutions to locate on the
island 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 GNP. Banking now
contributes over 20% to GNP and manufacturing about 15%. Trade is mostly
with the UK.
GNP: $490 million, per capita $7,573; real growth rate NA% (1988)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Unemployment rate: 1.5% (1988)
Budget: revenues $130.4 million; expenditures $114.4 million,
including capital expenditures of $18.1 million (FY85 est.)
Exports: $NA;
commodities--tweeds, herring, processed shellfish meat;
partners--UK
Imports: $NA;
commodities--timber, fertilizers, fish;
partners--UK
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 61,000 kW capacity; 190 million kWh produced,
2,930 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: an important offshore financial center; financial
services, light manufacturing, tourism
Agriculture: cereals and vegetables; cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry
Economic aid: NA
Currency: Manx pound (plural--pounds); 1 Manx pound (LM) = 100
pence
Exchange rates: Manx pounds (LM) per US$1--0.5171 (January 1991),
0.5603 (1990), 0.6099 (1989), 0.5614 (1988), 0.6102 (1987), 0.6817
(1986), 0.7714 (1985); the Manx pound is at par with the British pound
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 36 km electric track, 24 km steam track
Highways: 640 km motorable roads
Ports: Douglas, Ramsey, Peel
Merchant marine: 73 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,634,471
GRT/2,906,039 DWT; includes 8 cargo, 6 container, 6 roll-on/roll-off
cargo, 31 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 4 chemical
tanker, 2 combination ore/oil, 3 liquefied gas, 13 bulk; note--a captive
register of the United Kingdom, although not all ships on the register
are British-owned
Airports: 2 total; 1 usable with permanent-surface runways
1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: 24,435 telephones; stations--1 AM, 4 FM, 4 TV
DEFENSE FORCES
Note: defense is the responsibility of the UK