P50 Fire Extinguishers

Summary

The requester asked for procurement details, costs, and correspondence regarding P50 plastic fire extinguishers and the Department's policy on plastic purchases. The Department of Infrastructure responded that it has not procured any P50 extinguishers itself, though some were installed by contractors or occupants, and released redacted correspondence regarding potential future use.

Key Facts

• The Department of Infrastructure has not procured any P50 fire extinguishers to date.
• A small number of P50 extinguishers were fitted in properties by building occupiers or contractors during construction projects.
• No decision has been made to utilize P50 extinguishers in Government buildings due to resource constraints during the pandemic.
• Correspondence and a briefing report were released with cost information redacted.
• The Department does not currently have a specific procurement strategy for these appliances.

Data Disclosed

• 12 May 2021
• 4 June 2021
• 1789946
• Section 30
• Section 25

Exemptions Cited

• Section 30 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Commercial sensitivity)
• Section 25 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Data protection)

Original Request

Dear Sirs. I would like to be provided with the number of P50 fire extinguishers the DOI have procured to date. I would be obliged if the department can advise. 1. How many in total have been purchased. 2. The total cost to the tax payer for the total purchased. 3. When the procurement exercise took place and what method of procurement was used for the purchase. 4. Who supplied the P50 extinguishers and do they currently undertake any other Isle of Man Government work. In relation to the above I would under the freedom of information act , be supplied with all and any email , letter correspondence ect discussing the use of P50 fire extinguishers in Government premises. In regards the above P50 fire extinguishers are made from plastic, please provide the Department of Infrastructures policy on purchasing plastic products, when other materials such as metal are available when purchasing goods .

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Appendix 1

Please quote the reference number 1789946 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 to foi.doi@gov.im or by delivery/post to The FOI Co-ordinator, Department of Infrastructure, Sea Terminal Buildings, Douglas, IM1 2RF. An electronic version and paper version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at www.gov.im/foireview

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; 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 rights to review is 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 https://www.gov.im/about-the-government/freedom-of-information/

Department of Infrastructure Sea Terminal Building, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 2RF

Contact: FOI Response Team/HG/MF Telephone: (01624) 686785 Email: dpo-doi@gov.im

Our ref: 1789946 4 June 2021

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 12 May 2021 and which states:

"Dear Sirs. I would like to be provided with the number of P50 fire extinguishers the DOI have procured to date. I would be obliged if the department can advise. 1. How many in total have been purchased. 2. The total cost to the tax payer for the total purchased. 3. When the procurement exercise took place and what method of procurement was used for the purchase. 4. Who supplied the P50 extinguishers and do they currently undertake any other Isle of Man Government work. In relation to the above I would under the freedom of information act , be supplied with all and any email , letter correspondence ect discussing the use of P50 fire extinguishers in Government premises. In regards the above P50 fire extinguishers are made from plastic, please provide the Department of Infrastructures policy on purchasing plastic products, when other materials such as metal are available when purchasing goods ."

1 - 4. The Department has not procured any P50 Fire extinguishers to date for use within the buildings for which it has responsibility. 5. The Department is aware that a small number of these appliances have been fitted in a number of properties – either by the building occupier or when the location

was a standalone discrete site which was the subject of a construction project and was therefore the responsibility of the contractor or manager of the site. 6. The Department has conducted some initial discussions with a number of stakeholders regarding the potential for use of these appliances in Government buildings – copies of correspondence and briefing report are appended for your review (see Appendix 1). No decision has yet been made as to whether these appliances will be utilised in any Government buildings and therefore no procurement strategy has been developed. This is primarily due to resources being directed elsewhere during the Covid-19 pandemic. Please note that some cost information has been redacted from the briefing report for reasons of commercial sensitivity in accordance with Section 30 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 and also for data protection reason in accordance with Section 25 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015. Where costs are readily available in the public domain these have been disclosed. Section 30 of the Act is a qualified exemption and therefore subject to a public interest test. In assessing where the public interest lies, the following factors have been considered: Factors in favour of disclosure: • Transparency and openness by disclosing the information; • Accountability to the general public in respect of public expenditure. Factors in favour of maintaining the exemption: • Harm to the commercial interests of contractors; • Reputational damage to the DOI arising from disclosure of the information; • Damage to the working relationship and trust between contractors and the DOI; • Damage to the economy of the IOM by releasing the information, if in future the tender exercise needed to be repeated this could put some contractors at an unfair advantage, and/or at a disadvantage. Taking these factors into account, the Department of Infrastructure has determined that the factors in favour of maintaining the exemption outweigh the factors in favour of disclosing some of the information.
7. The Department does not have a policy on purchasing metal vs plastic.

Please quote the reference number 1789946 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 us and we 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 us. Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi. We will now close your request as of this date.

Yours sincerely

FOI Response Team