Comis Hotel appointment for repatriation

Summary

The request sought details on hotels approached for COVID-19 quarantine accommodation and the appointment date of the Comis Hotel. The Department for Enterprise disclosed the list of approached hotels and the date of approach, but noted it did not hold the specific contract appointment date, referring the requester to a previous response from the Department of Infrastructure.

Key Facts

• Hotels approached for the quarantine scheme included Ramsey Park Hotel, Sefton Group (Express, Palace and Sefton), and Comis Hotel.
• Selection criteria required providers to have 50 or more available rooms and an open, functioning restaurant.
• The approached providers were contacted on 1st April 2020.
• The Department for Enterprise does not hold the specific appointment date for the Comis Hotel contract as it was agreed with the Department of Infrastructure.
• The Department of Infrastructure previously disclosed the Comis Hotel appointment date as 15th April 2020 in response to FOI request 1355441.

Data Disclosed

• 1st April 2020
• 15th April 2020
• 50 plus available rooms
• 1414521
• 1355441
• 10 August 2020
• 3 September 2020

Exemptions Cited

• Information not held by the public authority

Original Request

I originally directed this to DOI but they told it should have been directed to Department for Enterprise. My questions are in relation to the accommodation for returning residents who were to be quarantined during the COVID pandemic. 1. Which hotels were approached for the scheme? 2. On what date were these hotels approached? 3. On what date was the Comis Hotel appointed?

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Freedom of Information Co-ordinator 1st Floor, St Georges Court Upper Church Street, Douglas Isle of Man IM1 1EX

Telephone: (01624 682381) Website: www.gov.im/ded Email: anthony.walker@gov.im

Our ref: 1414521 3 September 2020

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 10 August 2020 and which states:

"I originally directed this to DOI but they told it should have been directed to Department for Enterprise. My questions are in relation to the accommodation for returning residents who were to be quarantined during the COVID pandemic. 1. Which hotels were approached for the scheme? 2. On what date were these hotels approached? 3. On what date was the Comis Hotel appointed?" Our response to your questions is as follows: 1. The following hotel accommodation providers were approached for the scheme: Ramsey Park Hotel, Sefton Group (Express, Palace and Sefton), Comis Hotel. To add context as to why these providers were selected; only providers with 50 plus available rooms were selected and only those who had an open and functioning restaurant at the time of approach. 2. The above named providers were approached on 1st April 2020. 3. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the public authority does not hold or cannot, after taking reasonable steps to do so, find some of the information that you have requested. The agreed contract was between the Department of Infrastructure (DOI) and Comis Hotel. The Department for Enterprise does not hold this information however please be advised that the DOI did provide this information in response to Freedom of Information Request 1355441 and stated the appointment date as 15th April 2020.

Please quote the reference number 1414521 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

If you are unhappy with this response to your freedom of information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will be happy to arrange for this. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been concluded.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on; 1. Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015; or 2. Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.
In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision. More detailed information on your right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im. Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi.

I will now close your request as of this date.

Yours sincerely