MHK wants growth in the working population

Shimmins aware of demographic 'challenge'

An MHK says government policy must aim to grow the number of economically active people on the Isle of Man.

Last week it was revealed the Island has a higher dependency ratio than the UK, EU, and other Crown Dependencies - that's the percentage of the working population as measured against the non-working population.

For every 100 people defined as of working age on the Island, there are 64 people under 16 or over retirement age.

This compares to 56 in the UK, 54 Guernsey, and 50 in Jersey. 

Middle member Bill Shimmins says although it's just a statistic, the ratio does underline a demographic challenge which can't be ignored:

Watch more of the interview on the Manx Radio Portal.