Cabinet Office
147 FOI requests | Full disclosure rate: 100.0%
The Freedom of Information requests to the Isle of Man Cabinet Office reveal an authority that is generally cooperative regarding historical data, spending totals, and employment statistics, but fiercely protective of its internal deliberative processes and contingency planning. A clear pattern emerges where the government readily discloses the *cost* of its actions—such as the £425,000 legal retainer for Lansons (464233) or the £57,000 paid to John Barrett QC (1001057)—while withholding the *strategy* behind them. This is most evident in the Brexit cluster, where documents on 'Operation Yellowhammer' (937314) and food supply chains (984789) were entirely exempted, suggesting a 'need-to-know' approach to national security and economic stability that overrides public transparency.
Key Cases
Case 937314 — The complete refusal to disclose any documents regarding 'Operation Yellowhammer' (No-Deal Brexit contingency) is a critical case. It reveals the government's decision to keep its most sensitive emergency planning entirely hidden from public scrutiny, citing exemptions that prevent any insight into how the island prepared for a potential economic and logistical collapse.
Case 464233 — This case disclosed a massive £425,000 annual retainer for the law firm Lansons, plus an additional £70,000 for 'international scrutiny.' It highlights the significant financial burden of legal defense and reputation management on the public purse, likely linked to the island's financial crime investigations.
Case 354247 — The disclosure of the Cabinet Office paper regarding the UK Investigatory Powers Bill is notable for its intersection of national security and local legislation. It shows the Isle of Man's active role in shaping its own surveillance laws in alignment with the UK, raising questions about privacy and state powers.
Case 1001057 — Revealing that John Barrett QC was paid over £57,000 for a single planning inquiry (the East Area Plan) underscores the high cost of independent legal advice in government planning. It connects to a broader narrative of expensive external consultants being used to navigate complex land-use disputes.
Case 354255 — The full release of the 'Beamans Report' on modernizing ministerial government is significant because it provides a rare, unredacted look at internal critiques of senior management structures. Unlike many policy papers, this was fully disclosed, offering a benchmark for what transparency looks like when the government is willing to share reform documents.
Related FOI Stories
Brexit Contingency and Border Security — #354247, #358517, #354299, #354301, #354303
Legal Costs and High-Profile Appointments — #354269, #354289, #354291, #464233, #980113
Government Transparency and Policy Formulation — #354255, #354267, #354309, #354357, #357735
Public Sector Employment and Workforce Data — #354221, #354313, #354315, #354321, #354327
Ministerial Conduct and Travel Expenses — #354249, #354287, #354305, #357737, #622865
| Date | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-10-03 | External Advice | All information sent |
| 2025-09-30 | Office of Human Resources - selection procedure | All information sent |
| The request sought details on the Isle of Man Government's recruitment and selection procedures, specifically regarding the role of the Office of Human Resources (OHR), AI usage, and shortlisting criteria. The response disclosed that hiring panels review all applications, no AI is used for selection, and OHR only performs pre-sift reviews for a small number of senior roles. | ||
| 2025-08-11 | Public health | All information sent |
| A request was made for monthly meningitis case statistics reported to public health between 2021 and 2022. The Cabinet Office disclosed that only one case was reported during this entire period, occurring in September 2022. | ||
| 2025-08-05 | Staff networks | All information sent |
| The requester asked for a list of all staff networks within the Isle of Man civil service, similar to those in the UK. The Cabinet Office responded that it holds information only for its own department, disclosing two recently established networks focused on wellbeing and carbon reduction. | ||
| 2025-08-05 | Welfare | All information sent |
| The request sought statistics on staff contacting welfare services in the Isle of Man public sector over the last three years, broken down by department. The Cabinet Office disclosed total assessment numbers and a departmental breakdown, noting that smaller departments were grouped to protect anonymity. | ||
| 2025-07-16 | New employment positions created in last five years | All information sent |
| The request sought data on new government employment positions created over the last five financial years, specifically asking for a departmental breakdown. The Cabinet Office disclosed that precise data on 'new' roles versus amended roles is not captured, but provided tables showing the net increase in open positions by department for each financial year from 2020 to 2025. | ||
| 2025-07-15 | OHR: Copy of Principal Clinical Psychologist JD & PS | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the job description and person specification for a Principal Clinical Psychologist position advertised in December 2015, along with confirmation of appointment. The Cabinet Office disclosed all requested information, providing the full job description and person specification documents. | ||
| 2025-06-12 | GTS Staff Recruitment and Rention | All information sent |
| The request sought a five-year breakdown of Government Trading Services (GTS) recruitment advertisements, staff departures, and failed hiring attempts. The Cabinet Office disclosed all requested data, providing annual figures for advertised positions, total leavers, and specific instances where vacancies were not filled in the first round. | ||
| 2025-05-16 | Communications with Serco | All information sent |
| The requester asked the Isle of Man Cabinet Office about communications with Serco Group Plc and any resulting policies or legislation. The authority disclosed one unsolicited marketing newsletter received in October 2024 but confirmed no direct communications, policy impacts, or legislative influence occurred. | ||
| 2025-05-12 | Immigrants | All information sent |
| The requester asked if the Palace Hotel and Sefton Hotel were housing legal or illegal immigrants. The Cabinet Office responded by providing a media statement confirming that the Isle of Man cannot process UK asylum applications or house individuals awaiting UK immigration decisions. | ||
| 2025-01-17 | Minimum Wage/Living Wage Calculations | All information sent |
| The requester sought the specific basket of goods and price sources used to calculate the Isle of Man Living Wage since 2017, but the Cabinet Office disclosed detailed data only for 2022-2024 due to the impracticality of compiling historical records from 2017-2021. | ||
| 2024-11-19 | 2021 Census Occupation Data | All information sent |
| The requester asked for a complete export of all job titles from the 2021 Isle of Man Census in a machine-readable format. The Cabinet Office fulfilled the request by sending an attached document containing the data. | ||
| 2024-10-07 | Cost of Supply Teachers | All information sent |
| The requester asked the Cabinet Office for the total cost of supply teachers to the Manx taxpayer for the last academic year and the preceding four years after the Department of Education, Sport and Culture redirected the query. The authority disclosed the specific costs for each of the five academic years, totaling over £12.9 million. | ||
| 2024-09-09 | Temporary Workers Employed via Agencies | All information sent |
| The requester asked for data on temporary administrative workers employed via agencies by the Isle of Man Cabinet Office from January 2023 to September 2024. The authority disclosed that 25 such workers were engaged during this period, providing a monthly breakdown of the figures. | ||
| 2024-09-05 | Gardening contract at Government House | All information sent |
| The request sought details regarding the 2023 gardening contract for Government House, including the contractor, tendering process, and contract duration. The Cabinet Office disclosed that Dave Noble Gardening Limited was awarded a three-year contract following a competitive tender, with the same contractor continuing into 2024. | ||
| 2024-08-27 | Suicide Rate/ misadventures death | All information sent |
| The request sought 2023/24 figures for suicide and misadventure verdicts in the Isle of Man, and the Cabinet Office provided a table with registered death counts for 2023 and partial 2024 data. | ||
| 2024-08-15 | Cost of Lieutenant Governor | All information sent |
| A request was made to the Cabinet Office for detailed cost breakdowns of the Lieutenant Governor's position, including staff, allowances, and running costs for Government House in 2023. The authority confirmed the position carries no occupational pension or personal allowances for food, drink, or fuel, though the full response regarding 2023 expenditure figures is truncated in the provided text. | ||
| 2024-04-16 | Annual defence contribution to the UK | All information sent |
| The request sought details on the Isle of Man's annual defence contribution to the UK, including funding sources, payment history, and a list of services covered. The authority disclosed specific payment amounts from 2021 to 2024 and attached the 1994 Contribution Agreement, but stated it does not hold a breakdown of specific services or how the funds are spent on the Island. | ||
| 2024-03-19 | Cost of Report into complaints of ministerial bullying | All information sent |
| 2024-02-29 | Overpaid pensions (Civil Service and Police Pensions) | All information sent |
| 2024-02-06 | Equality Training figures | All information sent |
| 2024-01-24 | Equality Survey | All information sent |
| 2024-01-08 | Homes for Ukraine Scheme - Payments | All information sent |
| 2024-01-02 | chief secretary advice panel, freedom of information act section 57 | All information sent |
| 2023-12-20 | Minister Expenses 2022 / 23 | All information sent |
| 2023-12-14 | Equality training & public administration decision making | All information sent |
| 2023-12-08 | Planning Appeals 2015 to date | All information sent |
| 2023-11-20 | Chiefs wages | All information sent |
| 2023-11-01 | Figures of refugee and asylum seekers | All information sent |
| 2023-11-01 | Persons missing from Register of Electors | All information sent |
| 2023-10-26 | Updated number of Government employees | All information sent |
| 2023-10-25 | Headcount of Government employees | All information sent |
| 2023-10-24 | Remuneration paid to Manx Care Board members 2022-23 | All information sent |
| 2023-10-11 | Free Private Health Care | All information sent |
| 2023-10-11 | Living wage | All information sent |
| 2023-10-03 | Government Conference on Thursday the 21st September 2023 | All information sent |
| 2023-09-13 | Sickness records | All information sent |
| 2023-07-24 | Interim Information Commissioner | All information sent |
| 2023-07-10 | Immigration from outwith Common Travel Area | All information sent |
| 2023-06-20 | JEGS | All information sent |
| 2023-02-15 | Precautionary Suspension | All information sent |
| 2023-02-10 | Employee Referral Scheme | All information sent |
| 2023-02-03 | integrity line | All information sent |
| 2023-01-10 | Gender Pay Disparity | All information sent |
| 2022-11-15 | Remuneration paid to Manx Care Board members. | All information sent |
| 2022-10-31 | TikTok | All information sent |
| 2022-09-27 | MHK opt in/out of which pay award list. | All information sent |
| The requester asked if Payroll holds records of MHKs opting in or out of pay awards and if these are kept in compliance with the OHR Records Management Policy. The Cabinet Office confirmed that if such data is provided to the Payroll Team, they are responsible for holding and retaining it in compliance with the policy. | ||
| 2022-09-14 | Suicide | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the number of suicide deaths on the Isle of Man over the past five years and the current year to date. The Cabinet Office disclosed the specific annual figures from 2017 to 2022, confirming all requested information was provided. | ||
| 2022-09-12 | HR Complaints | All information sent |
| A request was made for details regarding HR complaints against Digital Agency board members over the last five years. The Cabinet Office disclosed that one complaint was received under the Fairness at Work Policy, which was not upheld. | ||
| 2022-09-06 | Job grades in Payroll | All information sent |
| The requester asked for job role grades containing 'customer service' in the Payroll team and which grades were included in the original business case. The Cabinet Office confirmed that Executive Officer (EO) and Administrative Officer (AO) grades hold these titles and were included in the business case. | ||