The UK government has cast further doubt on ties between the UK and the Isle of Man, saying the relationship may need reviewing amid a recent diplomatic clash about the extent to which UK depositors should be protected for money held in the jurisdiction, media reports said.

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown's comments, made in an interview at the weekend, echo similar remarks by Finance Minister Alistair Darling who called for a review of ties. Those comments led to high level meetings between Isle of Man authorities and the UK government which had seemed to resolve the issue.

"I think we may have to look at the relationship between the Isle of Man and Britain in this respect," Mr Brown said in an interview with the BBC. He said it is "sad" that the Isle of Man has a financial system "that is operating in a different way from the rest of Britain."

The Isle of Man, which is a located in the Irish Sea, is a self-governing UK crown dependency but is represented by the UK on the world stage. The Isle of Man has clashed with the UK over the latter's decision to freeze the assets of Icelandic banks, which included the Isle of Man branch of nationalised Icelandic bank Kaupthing.

Tensions between the UK and the dependency come at a time when international financial jurisidictions such as the Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Cayman Islands and Liechtenstein have been attacked for enabling individuals to avoid paying higher taxes in their home nations. Defenders, meanwhile, argue that these centres provide a necessary restraint on the ability of countries to impose heavy taxes.

On 14 November, there was a meeting between Isle of Man Chief Minister Tony Brown and UK Justice Minister Jack Straw after which Mr Brown said he had received assurances from the UK there would be no review of ties.