The Membership of the Council of Ministers E-Commerce Committee consists of:

Chief Minister - Hon D J Gelling, MHK
Treasury Minister - Hon R K Corkill, MHK
Minister for Trade and Industry - Hon D North, MHK
Chairman of the Communications Commission - Hon A R Bell, MHK
Chairman of the Information Systems Strategy Committee - Mr J N Radcliffe, MLC

The membership of the Consultative Committee is made up of individuals who are recognised as being particularly pro-active in the field of E-Commerce at the present time. Each person has been chosen to serve on the Committee, initially for a period of one year. The period of tenure is to facilitate the opportunity for the membership of the Committee to be reviewed on an annual basis as circumstances and priorities change. For the initial twelve months, however, the membership will consist of:

Nick Williamson
David Sherlock
Chris Gledhill
Chris Hall
Mark Lewin
Alyson Hamilton-Lacey
Caroline Wilks

There have long been calls for a private sector liaison group to further joint aims in the field of e-commerce and to act as a discussion forum.

The new committee will meet on a regular basis with the E-Commerce Officer Level Group in Government and with the Council of Ministers E-Commerce Committee, for the purpose of bringing to the forum private sector views on how to further develop the Isle of Man as a major e-commerce hub.

Chief Minister Mr Gelling commented on this latest development in the Isle of Man's e-commerce ambitions: 'I am delighted that those concerned have agreed to serve on this Committee, which represents part of our economy which is of increasing importance. I am aware that the individuals concerned are very busy in developing e-commerce opportunities and I am grateful to them for agreeing to make the time available to work in co-operation with Government in ensuring that the Isle of Man stays at the forefront of dynamic and pro-active e-commerce jurisdictions'.

He continued: 'I am aware that, in addition to those named on the Committee, there are many more actively involved in pursuing the opportunities presented by e-commerce. However, to keep the Committee within manageable proportions, it was necessary to limit the numbers to serve on the Committee. Although this Committee will be a focus within Government for public sector/private sector e-commerce liaison, it will not be the only voice into Government. There are many other areas of Government also actively involved in pursuing e-commerce, including the Department of Trade and Industry, the Treasury, the Insurance and Pensions Authority, the Financial Supervision Commission and the Department of Tourism and Leisure, to name but a few and these Departments and Statutory Boards will be developing and pursuing their own channels of communication with the private sector, which are vital if we are all to achieve our common goals'.

The island's Director of E-Commerce, Tim Craine, who is the central figure in the push to make the Isle of Man one of the top e-commerce locations, concluded that 'the willingness of those individuals who have agreed to serve on the Committee is a clear demonstration of the excellent co-operation which exists between the private and public sectors on this issue and the desire to work together to develop E-Commerce on the Island to its full potential'.