Market value of Government House, and further questions regarding the property

Summary

A request for details on Government House, including market value, rent, utilities, and property specifications, was partially fulfilled by the Cabinet Office. While rent and utility payment details were disclosed, information regarding market value, square footage, and plans was withheld as it was not held by the authority.

Key Facts

• No rent is paid by the Lieutenant Governor as Government House is an official residence, not a private one.
• All utility bills for the property are paid by the Department of Infrastructure (DOI).
• The property contains four main bedrooms, one smaller bedroom, three sitting rooms, service rooms, and three offices.
• The Cabinet Office does not hold information regarding the market value, total square footage, or plans of the property.
• Applicants were advised to contact the DOI Public Estates and Housing Division for further information on the property.

Data Disclosed

• 21 September 2017
• 2017-10-05
• IM104004I
• 4 main bedrooms
• 1 smaller bedroom
• 3 sitting rooms
• 3 offices
• IM1 3PN

Exemptions Cited

• Information not held by the authority

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

1

REFERENCE NUMBER: IM104004I

REQUEST UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2015 (“the Act”) Thank you for your online application dated 21 September 2017 for the following information: 1) “Do you hold any basis to establish the market value of Government House, the residence of the Lieutenant-Governor and his spouse? For example, any recent market evaluation done (including the land). 2) How much rent do current tenants Sir Richard Gozney and Lady Gozney pay? 3) Do they pay utilities (such as electricity or Manx Gas)? 4) The property has been described as having 8 main bedrooms, two large sitting rooms, service rooms and wings of offices. Is that accurate? 5) What's the total square footage of the property? 6) Any other information on the property would be appreciated (such as plans and images).” Note that we have numbered these questions for ease of reference in the response below. Response to your request
Please find below the detail and answer to your questions that we can supply. 2) How much rent do current tenants Sir Richard Gozney and Lady Gozney pay? Government House is the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man. The Lieutenant Governor lives in the property and uses it to carry out many of his functions as Her Majesty The Queen’s personal representative on the Isle of Man. Because Government House is not the Lieutenant Governor’s private residence, no rent is paid.
3) Do they pay utilities (such as electricity or Manx Gas)? No, all utility bills for Government House are paid by the Department of Infrastructure (DOI). 4) The property has been described as having 8 main bedrooms, two large sitting rooms, service rooms and wings of offices. Is that accurate? No. The house has four main bedrooms, one smaller bedroom, three sitting rooms, service rooms and 3 offices. These rooms are to some extent flexible.
With regard to the remaining questions 1) 5) & 6) while our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Cabinet Office does not hold or cannot, after taking reasonable steps to do so, find the information that you have requested.

Government Office DOUGLAS Isle of Man IM1 3PN Tel: (+44) 01624 686244 Fax: (+44) 01624 685710 Website www.gov.im/co
2

As some of the information requested relates to Government property, you may wish to direct contact the DOI who may be able to assist you.
The DOI Public Estates and Housing Division website, containing contact details can be found at: www.gov.im/about-the-government/departments/infrastructure/public-estates-and-housing- division/.
Alternatively you may wish to submit a Freedom of Information request to the DOI via the online portal at: www.gov.im/about-the-government/freedom-of-information/make-a-freedom-of- information-request/ and select the DOI from the Departmental list in the ‘Request information from’ section of the ‘Your Details’. 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 to the FOI Co-ordinator, Cabinet Office, Government Office, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 3PN. An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website https://www.gov.im/foireview. 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 apply for a review of decisions by 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 rights to review is on the Information Commissioner’s website at: https://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.