An under-fire government department with a £3.5m deficit is to be relaunched with a new name, fewer staff and more focus.

Proposals following a strategic review will see a new slimmer Department of Economic Development renamed the Department for Enterprise as from October this year.

A number of its functions - including the Villa-Gaiety, the Job Centre, training services, energy policy and mining and minerals - will be transferred to other departments.

The plan will also see the creation of four public-private executive agencies covering finance, digital services, business and tourism.

Some 50 full-time staff, about a quarter of the total, plus 200 casual contract staff at the Villa-Gaiety, will be transferred but there will be no compulsory redundancies.

* More on this story see this week’s Manx Independent out in the shops tomorrow (Thursday).