The Liberal Vannin Party was founded in 2006 by Peter Karran, a former member of the Manx Labour Party. Karran was joined by Tony Wright who was already intending to contest Rushen as an independent. It was announced that their target seats would be Douglas South, Middle and Onchan. The party stood nine candidates in the 2006 Manx general election, and two of them were elected: Peter Karran in Onchan and Bill Malarkey in Douglas South. Karran received more votes than any other candidate in the election. After being elected representing the Liberal Vannin Party, Malarkey resigned from the party and sat as an independent. The Liberal Vannin Party sent delegates to the Liberal International's 2007 Hamburg Conference, where they became Observer Members pending verification at the 2008 Belfast Conference. Since the 2008 Belfast Conference, Liberal Vannin has been an official Observer Member of Liberal International. The Liberal Vannin Party is also listed as a "Sister Party" of the British Liberal Democrats. At the 2011 Manx general election, the Liberal Vannin Party stood ten candidates, received 20.9% of the vote and had three Members of the House of Keys elected. These were Peter Karran and Zac Hall in Onchan, and Kate Beecroft in Douglas South. Beecroft, standing as the official Liberal Vannin candidate, defeated Bill Malarkey who had previously been a member of the party but was contesting the seat as an independent. From 2011 to 2012, Karran served in the Isle of Man Government as the Minister for Education and Children. In May 2012 Zac Hall had his membership revoked for "bringing the party into disrepute", leaving them with only two MHKs. In 2014 Kate Beecroft was elected Leader of the Liberal Vannin Party, with Karran saying it "was time for a change".
Policies
The Liberal Vannin Party has promoted the following policies:
Addressing the Housing Crisis – "Nests for People not nest eggs for investors".
Facing the Facts On Immigration – "A Prosperous and Caring Society, NOT Unlimited Immigration".
The Economy – Making “Freedom to Flourish” more than just a slogan.
Law & Order – "Putting the Bobby Back On The Beat".
Protecting Pensions – "Providing certainty and fairness to pensioners".
Education – "Towards a Competent and Self Reliant Society".
Government Reform – "Getting more value from the Public Sector".
Protecting Our Environment.
The Liberal Vannin Party says it is committed to "sustainable development" for the protection of the environment and supports the encouragement of a culture of recycling and environmental awareness. The Liberal Vannin Party, assisted by Kevin Joseph McCarthy MSc, has been developing a "green" policy, which aims to invest in the appropriate technology and infrastructure to support environmental and economic goals in the spirit of the "Agenda 21" as put forth by the United Nations. A key initiative under the new policy is to investigate tidal and wind power as a means of generating alternative energy sources for the Island.
