Ian Paisley Jnr MP (North Antrim) and the Isle of Man TT

Summary

The requester sought correspondence, ticket/hospitality records, and meeting details involving Ian Paisley Jnr MP and the Isle of Man Department for Enterprise regarding the TT. The authority disclosed held correspondence, confirmed no tickets or hospitality were provided, and listed a single meeting in Belfast.

Key Facts

• The Department confirmed it has not provided tickets or hospitality to Ian Paisley Jnr MP between 2011 and 2019.
• Only one meeting occurred between Department officials and Ian Paisley Jnr MP during the requested period.
• The meeting took place on 11th April 2018 at the offices of Tourism NI in Belfast.
• The meeting was part of the Northern Ireland Motorsports Taskforce.
• Some personal mobile telephone numbers and signatures were redacted from the released correspondence.

Data Disclosed

• 1st January 2016
• 1st January 2019
• 2011
• 2019
• 11th April 2018
• 916921
• 20 working days

Original Request

Dear Sir, Under your stated obligations under the Freedom of Information act could you please release the following information in relation to the Isle of Man TT. 1. Please release all correspondence between Ian Paisley Jnr MP (North Antrim) and the department including ministers and the Director of Motorsport between 1st January 2016 and 1st January 2019? 2. Can the department confirm if they have ever provided tickets or hospitality to Ian Paisley Jnr MP for the Isle of Man TT between 2011 and 2019? If so, please provide a breakdown. 3. Can the department list each meeting officials, ministers or the director of motorsport has had with Ian Paisley Jnr MP including dates and locations between 1st January 2016 and 1st January 2019? If this request is too wide or unclear, I would be grateful if you could contact me as I understand that under the Act, you are required to advise and assist requesters. If any of this information is already in the public domain, please can you direct me to it, with page references and URLs if necessary? I understand that you are required to respond to my request within the 20 working days after you receive this letter. I would be grateful if you could confirm by e-mail that you have received this request.

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Broadcast House, Douglas Head Isle of Man IM9 5BW 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: 916921 30 August 2019

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 6 August 2019 and which states:

"Dear Sir, Under your stated obligations under the Freedom of Information act could you please release the following information in relation to the Isle of Man TT. 1. Please release all correspondence between Ian Paisley Jnr MP (North Antrim) and the department including ministers and the Director of Motorsport between 1st January 2016 and 1st January 2019? 2. Can the department confirm if they have ever provided tickets or hospitality to Ian Paisley Jnr MP for the Isle of Man TT between 2011 and 2019? If so, please provide a breakdown. 3. Can the department list each meeting officials, ministers or the director of motorsport has had with Ian Paisley Jnr MP including dates and locations between 1st January 2016 and 1st January 2019? If this request is too wide or unclear, I would be grateful if you could contact me as I understand that under the Act, you are required to advise and assist requesters. If any of this information is already in the public domain, please can you direct me to it, with page references and URLs if necessary? I understand that you are required to respond to my request within the 20 working days after you receive this letter. I would be grateful if you could confirm by e-mail that you have received this request."

1. Attached are the communications in relation to the dates noted, between the Director of Motorsport and/or the Minister and Mr Ian Paisley MP that are held by the Department. Some personal mobile telephone numbers and signatures have been redacted from these documents;
2. The Department can confirm that it has not provided tickets or Hospitality to Mr Ian Paisley MP between 2011 and 2019; 3. There has only been one meeting at which officials of the Department and Mr Paisley were in attendance. This was on 11th April 2018 when the Director of Motorsport and the TT and Motorsport Development Manager attended a meeting of the Northern Ireland Motorsports Taskforce, held at the offices of Tourism NI in Belfast. An invitation was received for the Director to attend the launch event for the Taskforce report launch; however, he was unable to attend.

Please quote the reference number 916921 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

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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