The Council of Ministers is drawing up a ’performance management framework’ to ensure its members are up to scratch.

Chief Minister Howard Quayle revealed the measure in Tynwald on Tuesday.

Lawrie Hooper (LibVannin, Ramsey) asked him what measures were in place to ensure that ministers complied with the Programme for Government, the central policy making plank of Mr Quayle’s administration.

Mr Quayle said: ’In the first instance, all ministers are bound by collective responsibility to the Programme for Government.

’In addition, we will be bringing a comprehensive performance management framework to Tynwald in April.’

He added: ’Progress against the outcomes, policies and actions in the programme will be reported quarterly to the council sub-committees. Where a minister or department is not delivering against the programme, this will first be addressed at committee level and escalated to council where necessary.’

Mr Hooper demanded to know what action would be taken when an individual minister made statements that directly contradicted the Programme for Government.

The chief minister told Mr Hooper he would be ’more than happy to investigate’ if he had any examples.

Mr Quayle added: ’We each hold each other to account in Council of Ministers and I hope the work of Tynwald and the scrutiny committees will also play a role in this.’

Speaker Juan Watterson, a former government minister, asked whether cabinet members had signed a delegation to the chief secretary to ’pursue matters of corporate importance’, as had occurred under the previous administration.

’I believe that is correct,’ said Mr Quayle.