Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan will deliver his third Budget today against a backdrop of Brexit uncertainty but a still healthy Manx economy.

The clock is ticking towards 11pm on March 29 but no one is yet any the wiser about how the UK’s withdrawal from EU will look. But what is clear is that a no-deal will have a major impact here.

However, Mr Cannan will have some good reasons to be positive.

Government accounts published in November showed tax revenues up and spending on benefits down, with unemployment levels remaining at a 14-year low.

Mr Cannan is likely to use those welcome figures to give another boost for working families.

The much-trailed introduction of a Manx single state pension, due to come in from April, will be one of the highlights of the Budget – and we will hear exactly what the rate will be.

In the UK, the full basic state pension is £164.35. It has already been signalled that the Manx one will be about £180 a week. But it will mean the phasing out of the Manx pension supplement over 20 years.

With the Department of Health and Social Care projecting yet another overspend this year, in the order of £3.5m, we can expect more money for health.

But will there be anything more for other departments?

Another challenge facing the island is the falling population as revealed by the last census. Ministers insist that the trend has reversed somewhat.

But the growth appears to be among the over 65s rather than among the working age population whose tax revenues government needs to fund vital public services.

There is also concern that fewer than 50% of Manx students are returning to the island after graduation. It will be interesting to see if Mr Cannan can offer anything to attract them back.