While news a deal being reached with Manx Gas has been called ’presumptuous’ by a Minister, what happens after the expiry of that deal is being questioned.

Policy and Reform Minister Ray Harmer had to tell Tynwald this week that he ’regrets’ he is not able to place heads of terms in front of them, as the Council of Ministers hasn’t yet agreed to them.

Mr Harmer said there had been ’extensive negotiations’ with the utility supplier and that an agreement was only reach on Thursday last week.

He added that while he could’ve sought a supplementary order paper to the October Tynwald, he chose not to as it wouldn’t have allowed members time to scrutinise the deal.

Campaigner for better gas prices Barry Murphy asked why the closure time for negotiation wasn’t some weeks ago to allow proceedings to continue this week and said he has concerns over what happens after 2021.

Mr Murphy added: ’There are two issues running parallel here and to some extent are in conflict with each other.

’Firstly an agreement with Manx Gas allows the Government to follow a predetermined route to some extent.

’What is in the current agreement in principle will be clear for all to see. However, what is not in it must not be ignored by CoMin either before presenting it.

’The carrot still dangles regarding the 13.7% discount on bills through the letter box for 2020 and 2021. What happens after that I’m not sure.’

Under the proposal, natural gas domestic and small business customers would get an average refund of £93 on their 2020 bill, a cut of 13.7%. There would also be the same reduction in tariff for 2021.

Manx Gas chief executive David Cruddace has said the deal would represents ’good news for customers’.

However, while Mr Cruddace has said there will be ’competitive pricing in years to come’, no detail has been made available for what this pricing would be after the deal runs out at the end of 2021.

Unless Mr Harmer and CoMin seeks an extension of those terms into 2022, the next administration, which will be formed after the 2021 general election, would be faced with negotiating a new deal with the company within three weeks of taking office.

In Jersey, where talks broke down between the government Jersey Gas, which is part of the same parent company Islands Energy Group as Manx Gas, customers were hit by a 6.5% increase earlier this year.

Mr Harmer told this week’s Tynwald sitting that Manx Gas’s announcement that it had reached an agreement with the government on a proposed new gas tariff was ’more than a little presumptuous’.

He added: ’We agreed wording for a possible head of terms agreement, that is it.’

However, Mr Harmer also warned that he is prepared to introduce primary legislation, before the end of the year, to impose regulations on Manx Gas if the deal is rejected by Tynwald.