Applications for Trees felling on the government house land.

Summary

The request sought all tree felling applications on Government House land over the last two years. The authority disclosed five specific tree felling licences issued by the Agriculture & Lands Directorate but noted that planning-related tree removal information is exempt and accessible via a public search facility.

Key Facts

• Tree felling licences are issued by the Agriculture & Lands Directorate, not Planning and Building Control.
• Five specific licences were issued between September 2019 and February 2021.
• Information regarding tree removal under the Town and Country Planning Act is exempt from disclosure.
• Exempt planning information is available via the public Planning search facility.
• The request was received on 9 August 2021 and closed on 16 August 2021.

Data Disclosed

• 527/19
• 09/09/2019
• 144/20
• 19/03/2020
• 180/20
• 31/03/2020
• 776/20
• 27/11/2020
• 067/21
• 15/02/2021
• 4 Sycamore
• 1 Beech
• 2 Sycamore
• 1 Eucalyptus
• 1 Alder
• 1 Ash
• 4 Beech
• 10 Lime
• 14 Sycamore
• 1 Sweet Chestnut
• 6 Cypress
• 1941149
• 2021-08-09
• 2021-08-16

Exemptions Cited

• S.20 of the Freedom of Information Act (information accessible via public search facility)

Original Request

All applications for Tree felling to Forestry, Amenity & Lands Directorate Department of Environment, Food & Agriculture, Thie Slieau Whallian, Foxdale Road, St. Johns, IM4 3AS Tel: 01624 695701 E-mail: forestry@gov.im Planning and Building Control Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture, Murray House, Mount Havelock, Douglas, IM1 2SF Tel: 01624 685950 E-mail: planning@gov.im on Government House land in the last two years.

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Freedom of Information Co-ordinator Corporate Services Directorate Thie Slieau Whallian, Foxdale Road, St John’s, Isle of Man, IM4 3AS Tel no (01624) 685854 Fax no (01624 685851 Email: defa@gov.im www.gov.im

Our ref: 1941149 16th August 2021

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 9th August 2021 and which states:

"All applications for Tree felling to Forestry, Amenity & Lands Directorate Department of Environment, Food & Agriculture, Thie Slieau Whallian, Foxdale Road, St. Johns, IM4 3AS Tel: 01624 695701 E-mail: forestry@gov.im Planning and Building Control Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture, Murray House, Mount Havelock, Douglas, IM1 2SF Tel: 01624 685950 E-mail: planning@gov.im on Government House land in the last two years."

The tree felling licences given by the Agriculture & Lands Directorate are listed below. Reference Number Date of Issue Condition Approved Work 527/19 09/09/2019 Replanting Conditions 4 Sycamore, Felling 1 Beech, Felling 144/20 19/03/2020 None 2 Sycamore, Felling 180/20 31/03/2020 None 1 Sycamore, Felling 1 Eucalyptus, Felling 776/20 27/11/2020 None 1 Alder, Felling 1 Ash, Felling 4 Beech, Felling 10 Lime, Felling 14 Sycamore, Felling 1 Sweet Chestnut, Pruning 067/21 15/02/2021 None 6 Cypress, Felling Applications for licences to undertake tree work under the Tree Preservation Act 1993 are only dealt with by the Agriculture and Lands (A&L) Directorate. Any such application sent to the Planning and Building Control (P&BC) Directorate would therefore be passed to A&L, meaning that P&BC do not hold any information. Tree removal can be permitted through the Town and Country Planning Act (1999). Any information pertaining to tree removal as part of a planning application is exempt

from disclosure under S.20 of the Freedom of Information Act as it is accessible via the Planning search facility at the following address. https://services.gov.im/planningapplication/services/planning/search.iom

Please quote the reference number 1941149 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.