Polls

Summary

The request sought records of all social media polls published by Digital Isle of Man between July and August 2025, including any deleted content. The authority disclosed details of four published polls and one removed poll, providing supporting screenshots and internal chat extracts while redacting personal data.

Key Facts

• Digital Isle of Man published four polls on LinkedIn between 1 July and 15 August 2025.
• A fifth poll published on 14 August 2025 was removed the same evening for not aligning with the agency's remit.
• Supporting documentation included screenshots of poll content and internal chat logs evidencing the removal decision.
• Personal information within the documents was withheld under Section 25 of the Freedom of Information Act.
• The response was issued by the Department for Enterprise on 6 September 2025.

Data Disclosed

• 1 July 2025
• 15 August 2025
• 8 July 2025
• 16 July 2025
• 28 July 2025
• 6 August 2025
• 14 August 2025
• 4 polls
• 1 removed poll
• Section 25
• one hour

Exemptions Cited

• Section 25: Absolutely Exempt Personal Information

Original Request

I request records of all polls that Digital Isle of Man published on social media from 1 July 2025 to 15 August 2025. If any polls were deleted/removed from public view, I request all records relating to such polls. Such records include all documents under the scope of the Freedom of Information Act. Such records are likely to include screenshots and email chains and electronic messenger threads discussing such polls.

Data Tables (1)

Data Tables (reformatted)

Full Response Text

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

Telephone: (01624 686400) Website: https://www.iomdfenterprise.im/

Our ref: 4875053 6 September 2025

Dear ###

We write further to your request, received 15 August 2025, which states:

"I request records of all polls that Digital Isle of Man published on social media from 1 July 2025 to 15 August 2025.

If any polls were deleted/removed from public view, I request all records relating to such polls. Such records include all documents under the scope of the Freedom of Information Act. Such records are likely to include screenshots and email chains and electronic messenger threads discussing such polls."

Our response to your request is as follows:

In response to the request for records of all polls published on social media by Digital Isle of Man between 1 July and 15 August 2025, we confirm the following:

Published Polls:

During the specified period, Digital Isle of Man published four polls on its official LinkedIn channel:

• 8 July 2025: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7348267154791694337

• 16 July 2025: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7351188932027367425

• 28 July 2025: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7355507405998252032

• 6 August 2025: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7358799059546959874

Removed Poll:

A fifth poll was published on 14 August 2025 but was removed later that same evening. The decision to remove this poll was made internally by the marketing team after review, as it was felt the subject matter did not align with Digital Isle of Man's remit to promote the Island. The poll was live for a limited number of hours and received minimal engagement before being unpublished.

The decision was communicated via an internal team messaging platform, and screenshots of the poll and marketing schedule were retained for reference.

The removal was a proactive content management decision taken to ensure consistent alignment with the Agency's purpose.

Supporting Documentation:

• Screenshot of the July poll content.
• Screenshot of the 14 August poll before removal.
• Screenshot of relevant internal content planning materials.
• Extract from internal chat evidencing the discussion and decision to remove.

Please be aware that these documents are subject to an exemption:

Section 25: Absolutely Exempt Personal Information

S25 (2)(a)&(b)(i)

(2) Information is also absolutely exempt information if —
(a) it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is not the data subject; and (b) one of the following applies —
(i) in a case where the information falls within any of paragraphs (a) to (d) of the definition of “data” in section 1(1) of the Data Protection Act 2002, the disclosure of the information to a member of the public (otherwise than under this Act) would contravene any of the data protection principles;

Please quote the reference number 4875053 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.

This response took one hour to complete.

Freedom of Information Officer