ManxPACT members to stage demonstration in Douglas
A campaign group says it's staging a peaceful protest outside Tynwald today (20 October) to demand government takes greater action on suicide prevention.
ManxPACT members will be outside the Manx parliament from midday-2pm.
A spokesperson for the group said: "The protest follows the publication of the Social Affairs Policy Review Committee Report into Suicide, presented to Tynwald in July 2026.
"The report detailed that the Isle of Man’s suicide rate was higher than England’s in 13 of the 16 rolling three-year periods from 2006–08 to 2021–23.
"The latest figures show a Manx rate of 13.9 deaths per 100,000, compared with 10.7 in England.
"The report highlighted mental-health funding: 13.8 percent of funding for mental-health services in the UK, compared with nine percent allocated to mental-health services on the Isle of Man."
Founder, Juan Moore, added: "We want to bring our Island's community together and demonstrate the depth of feeling on this emotive subject.
"It is heartbreaking to repeatedly hear local people's negative experiences of the Island's suicide prevention mechanisms.
"We're calling for greater action from government.
"We want clear, measurable objectives that can be assessed with transparency.
"Charities and support groups can't be expected to save everyone who is falling through the cracks in the system.
“We are calling for funding to match UK levels, a community hub in each region and a duty clinician scheme for the crisis team.”
The group says members of the Manx community affected by the issue, or who want to support improvements in suicide prevention and mental-health provision, are invited to attend the protest on Prospect Hill.
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