Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan reveals he is keen to ensure the needs of society are a key driver behind economic policy making as he talks to PAUL SPELLER in the penultimate interview of our series of one-to-one talks with the island’s MHKs. The minister also ponders the suggestion that he is displaying a softer side these days.

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ALFRED Cannan has revealed the disappointment he felt after narrowly missing out in his bid to become chief minister.

Mr Cannan, the man who now holds the government purse strings, was regarded as Howard Quayle’s nearest challenger for the job of chief minister, even though his political background was solely from the back benches.

In October, he polled nine Keys votes to Mr Quayle’s 12 in the House of Keys ballot.

Many wondered why he and the other candidate, Kate Beecroft, who polled three, did not strike a deal to have just one challenger to the established order.

Mr Cannan says, had she withdrawn, ’her votes would have made a difference’.

’At the time, on the day and immediately afterwards, it is never a pleasant feeling to lose anything,’ he admits.

He describes his job as Treasury Minister as a ’huge privilege’, adding: ’It is absolutely right, given the situation that the island is in and the challenges it is facing, that I stepped up to the plate and put that kind of disappointment behind me.’

Now he has a key cabinet position, it also means any qualms over his lack of ministerial experience are being addressed.

If he is a success at Treasury, he is unlikely to lose the tag of being first in line to replace Mr Quayle, although both would regard that as being some way off.

He aims for tighter control on government spending, but that will inevitably lead to unpopular decisions.

’This is not austerity, this is good financial management and discipline,’ he says. ’This is cutting our cloth accordingly.

’This is about working within our means to do the best we can both for society in the present day but also making sure that we are delivering a financial framework that will ensure that the island maintains its stability over the next significant period of time.’

The Treasury minister’s role is often seen as that of the gatekeeper - to stop profligate ministers spending money that is not there - rather than an overtly political one, but Mr Cannan wants that to change.

’We have got to move away, if that has been the case, into a much more politically active role in the Treasury,’ he insists.

’We are doing that, we have certainly come in with a fresh approach in terms of our engaging with Tynwald.

’We have tried to make the Budget more transparent and open. This year, I will be listening to both the public, in terms of what is coming from the SAVE programme, but also going to the members of Tynwald to get their opinion.

’We are being extremely challenging about any spending plans. We have already rejected a number of proposals from departments. We are not accepting the status quo any more.

’We have laid out a clear plan over the next five years for us to put the island’s finances into a sustainable position.’

Part of the SAVE programme, to find £25 million of government savings, has involved going out to the public for suggestions. That has been met with scepticism in some quarters, but Mr Cannan is committed to engaging a wider audience to discuss the economy. And that includes being honest about the difficulties that may lie ahead.

’If people don’t understand the problem, they are unlikely to buy into the proposed solution,’ he says.

’The government does not stand in isolation. We serve the public. In making people aware of the challenges and the problems, we should also give the public, where they want, the opportunity to be part of the solution.’

He says it is important, also, to remember the reasons for driving the economy forward are not lost.

’We have set out to focus our budgets much more on society, rather than just government requirements,’ he says. ’In previous years, we have taken our eye off the ball, as far as society goes.’

He has had something of a tough guy image over the years - ask union officials who went into negotiations with him when he was chairman of the Civil Service Commission.

It is also due in part to an occasional air of impatience with matters and people that frustrate him and, truth be told, partly due to the Cannan name and the reputation of his father David - his predecessor both as Michael MHK and as Treasury minister - who was not unknown for taking a challenging position.

When we meet, however, he is relaxed, conversational and even affords a laugh or two. It may be he is generally more convivial away from the forum of debate, or could be down to his move from the back benches to the cabinet table.

I ask him if he feels he has softened his approach at all. He is not certain, at least, of any conscious change.

He agrees that he likes to speak his mind if he is in disagreement. ’I am very forthright in my expressions.’

But, he continues: ’If you are going to operate successfully in a consensus government you will have to give a bit of ground on some issues; but, on the major points of policy I generally do stick to my guns.

’I think I am approachable. I listen to people.

’I have changed over the last five years in terms of, perhaps, how I view what approach is needed to achieve successes.’

It is an illuminating encounter, revealing a side to the minister that is not always immediately apparent.

He is welcoming and open, to the extent that I think he surprises himself when he glances at the time and realises we had been talking for more than an hour (or, perhaps, he is better at disguising impatience away from politicians).

During that time, we discuss everything from the practical pressures of delivering a Budget speech and that seemingly endless round of engagements that go with it; the eternal problem of coastal erosion in his Ayre and Michael constituency; all the way to whether he hopes that Bill Malarkey and Ramsey Commissioners will manage to strike a deal on Ramsey courthouse before he has to sign off on any arrangement. That brings a wry - and diplomatic - smile.

At 49, Mr Cannan has already had a varied career. As a commissioned officer with the Royal Regiment of Wales, he saw active service in Northern Ireland.

How does that compare with politics?

’You are more likely to get a knife in the back in Tynwald!’ he jokes, before adding that it does not really compare at all.

He followed military service with a successful business career - he is still a director of the international recruitment business he set up, but is not involved in the day-to-day running, which is now in the hands of his wife, Bella.

He believes the varied background has helped with his politics. In a Tynwald career of fewer than six years, he is already the holder of one of the top jobs.

The next move could prove very interesting.