Stephen Charles Rodan MLC (born 19 April 1954) is a Manx politician who served as the

President of Tynwald The President of Tynwald (''Eaghtyrane Tinvaal'') is the presiding officer at the sittings of Tynwald Court in Douglas and is elected by the members of Tynwald from amongst their number. The first elected President, Charles Kerruish, was ele ...

from 2016 to 2021 and is a former Minister of the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government ...

and former MHK for the constituency of

Garff Garff () is one of the six sheadings of the Isle of Man. It is located on the east of the island (part of the traditional ''South Side'' division) and consists of the two historic parishes of Lonan and Maughold. Before 1796 it also includ ...

. He was first elected to the seat in a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election use ...

in 1995. He has been Isle of Man County Chairman of the Royal British Legion since 2012.

Early life and career

Born on 19 April 1954 in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

to Robert W. Rodan and Betty Rodan (née Turner), he is a qualified

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

. Rodan was educated at the

High School of Glasgow The High School of Glasgow is an Independent school (United Kingdom), independent, co-educational day school, day school in Glasgow, Scotland. The original High School of Glasgow was founded as the Cathedral school, choir school of Glasgow Cathe ...

and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

, before graduating from

Heriot-Watt University Heriot-Watt University ( gd, Oilthigh Heriot-Watt) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world's first mechanics' institute, and subsequently granted uni ...

, Edinburgh, with a BSc (Hons) in pharmacy. After graduating, in 1978, Rodan began practising as a pharmacist in

Elgin Elgin may refer to: Places Canada * Elgin County, Ontario * Elgin Settlement, a 19th-century community for freed slaves located in present-day North Buxton and South Buxton, Chatham-Kent, Ontario * Elgin, a village in Rideau Lakes, Ontario ...

, Morayshire. In 1980, he moved to

Bermuda ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , ...

and worked as a pharmacy manager until moving to the Isle of Man. Since 1987 Rodan has resided in

Laxey Laxey ( gv, Laksaa) is a village on the east coast of the Isle of Man. Its name derives from the Old Norse ''Laxa'' meaning 'Salmon River'. Its key distinguishing features are its three working vintage railways and the largest working waterwhee ...

, the most populated village in

, where he is the proprietor of a pharmacy. Politically he is a liberal, having chaired both the Heriot-Watt University Liberal Club and Scottish Young Liberals. He was also a Member of the National Executive of the

Scottish Liberal Party The Scottish Liberal Party, the section of the Liberal Party in Scotland, was the dominant political party of Victorian Scotland, and although its importance declined with the rise of the Labour and Unionist parties during the 20th century, it ...

. He stood for the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

in 1979 in the constituency of Moray and Nairn, but was defeated by the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

Alexander Pollock. Rodan was first elected as Member of the House of Keys for Garff in 1995, and re-elected in 1996, 2001, 2006, and 2011. In 2006, Rodan, then Minister of Health and Social Security, was instrumental in enfranchising 16 and 17 year olds when he moved a successful amendment to Clause 3 of the Registration of Electors Bill, a piece of legislation intended to provide for the rolling registration of electors, resulting in the lowering of the voting age. Rodan stood for

Chief Minister of the Isle of Man The Chief Minister (Manx: ''Ard-shirveishagh'') is the executive head of the Isle of Man Government. The office derives from that of Chairman of the Executive Council. Before 1980 the Executive Council was chaired by the Lieutenant Governor, b ...

following the November 2006 elections, but failed to gain the necessary support in round one. He then stood for Speaker and defeated

David Cannan John David Qualtrough Cannan (24 August, 1936 – 2022) was the Member of the House of Keys for Michael and Chairman of the Isle of Man Water Authority. He was the son of former Chaplain of the House of Keys, Rev Canon Charles Cannan. He w ...

and Quintin Gill. Rodan was elected as President of Tynwald on 19 June 2016 for a period of five years. Rodan presided over his final

Tynwald Day Tynwald Day ( gv, Laa Tinvaal) is the National Day of the Isle of Man, usually observed on 5 July (if this is a Saturday or Sunday, then on the following Monday). On this day, the Island's legislature, Tynwald, meets at St John's, instead of ...

on July 5, 2021, prior to standing down from the post. He was replaced as President of Tynwald by

Laurence Skelly Laurence David Skelly MLC is a Manx politician, who has served as President of Tynwald since July 2021. Political career He was elected as one of the three MHKs for Rushen in 2011, with 19.4% of the vote and was re-elected in 2016 as one ...

. Rodan was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

2019 Birthday Honours The 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as ...

for services to the Isle of Man.

Personal life

Rodan has been married to Ana (née Ballesteros Torres) since 1977; they have two children together.

Government positions

, 2016–2021 *

Member of the House of Keys The House of Keys () is the directly elected lower house of Tynwald, the parliament of the Isle of Man, the other branch being the Legislative Council. History The oldest known reference to the name is in a document of 1417, written in ...

, 1995–2016 * Minister of Education, 1999–2004 * Minister of Health and Social Security, 2004–2006 *

Speaker of the House of Keys The Speaker of the House of Keys () is the principal officer of the House of Keys, the lower house of the Isle of Man legislature. The Speaker is elected from the membership of the House at its first sitting after an election. He is responsi ...

, 2006–2016 *Deputy President of Tynwald, 2007-2016 *Member of the Tynwald Standards and Members' Interests Committee, 2006–present *Member of the Tynwald Ceremony Arrangements Committee, 2006–present (Chairman (eo) 2016-present) *Chairman of the Standing Orders Committee of the Legislative Council, 2016–present *Member of the Tynwald Setting Enhancement Sub-Committee, 2006–present *Member of the Tynwald Standing Orders Committee, 2006–present *Member of the Tynwald Honours Committee, 2006–present *Member of the Tynwald Management Committee, 2006–present *Trustee of the

Manx National Heritage Manx National Heritage ( gv, Eiraght Ashoonagh Vannin) is the national heritage organisation for the Isle of Man. The organisation manages a significant proportion of the island’s physical heritage assets including over 3,000 acres of coastlin ...

, 2006–2012 *Court of Liverpool University (eo), 2007-2014 *Tynwald Representative on the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly, 2007-2016 *Chairman of the Estates and Housing Division, 1995-1996 *Chairman of the Planning Committee, 1997-1999 *Chairman of the Emoluments Committee (eo), 2006-2016 *Chairman of the Tynwald Standards and Members' Interests Committee (eo), 2006-2016 *Chairman of the Tynwald Management Committee (eo), 2006-2016 *Chairman of the House of Keys Management and Members' Standards Committee (eo), 2006-2016 *Chairman of the Standing Orders Committee of the House of Keys (eo), 2006-2016

Publications

* ''Voting at 16 in the Isle of Man,'' The Parliamentarian Magazine, 2007/Issue 2 * ''Self-assessment in the Isle of Man,'' The Parliamentarian Magazine, 2012/Issue 1

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodan, Steve Scottish chemists Living people 1954 births Members of the House of Keys 1991–1996 Members of the House of Keys 1996–2001 Members of the House of Keys 2001–2006 Members of the House of Keys 2006–2011 Members of the House of Keys 2011–2016 Politicians from Glasgow Officers of the Order of the British Empire Scottish pharmacists

Early life and career

Personal life

Government positions

Other posts

Publications

References