Well-known former Assistant Headteacher, Senior Education Adviser and Local Commissioner Paul Craine, has indicated that he will stand as a candidate for the forthcoming House of Keys election in Middle. Paul first entered local politics as a Commissioner for Marown in 2007 and served the parish for nine years; five of those years as Chairman or Vice-Chairman. He stood for the House of Keys in Middle in 2011 and received well over 500 votes in the General Election. He recently published the “Isle of Man Population Atlas”.

At the all-Island level, Paul sees the economy and the Island’s population as the issues that really should dominate the election.

“The Isle of Man has been through an extraordinarily difficult time. After five years of spending cuts and new forms of taxation we still have an annual deficit of ?75 million and evidence of population decline. These key issues underlie everything else. We need level-headed people who understand the issues and care about the outcomes. There are going to be some tough decisions to be made”.

“As well as balancing the budget, the next five years are going to be about getting some other balances right:

• the balance between low-spending government yet making Island life attractive enough to encourage our own young people to remain or return 
• the balance between reducing spending yet protecting the vulnerable 
• the balance between taxation that is low and taxation that is fair
• the balance between small government and effective government
• the balance between competitive taxation policies and the Island’s international reputation
• the balance between recruiting the best government workers yet making public sector pensions more sustainable

“I believe that we need MHKs who prioritise good, caring constituency work but, in the Island’s current situation, we need MHKs who can offer much more than that. I know that I have a great deal to learn but I also know that I have a good understanding of both local and national government, and I know that no-one will work harder to represent the people of Middle”.

At the last election, Paul identified ‘Planning’ as the number one issue for Middle and believes that this is still the case. The three parishes that make up Middle are great communities. They are predominantly rural and attractive but they share an ever present threat of encroachment from Douglas. In Braddan the development of business units off the Cooil Road appears to be relentless. In both Santon and Marown, the level of local services is poor. The Area Plan for the East is due for publication soon and will lay down which parts of Middle should be zoned for development in the next decade and beyond: “I will make it one of my top priorities to ensure that the Area Plan meets local needs in Middle”.

Paul is married to Ann and they have lived in Middle since 1984 - sixteen years in Union Mills and sixteen years in Glen Vine. They have two married daughters.