Use of Government House in August, September and October 2018

Summary

The requester asked for a list of non-government events held at Government House in August, September, and October 2018. The Cabinet Office disclosed that no such events occurred in August or October, while three specific events were held in September, all of which incurred no cost to the taxpayer.

Key Facts

• No events by individuals or non-government organisations were held at Government House in August 2018.
• Three events were held in September 2018: a Royal Television Society Reception, a Wedding in the Garden, and a Live at Home Scheme Anniversary Reception.
• All disclosed events were sponsored or funded by external parties.
• There was no cost to Government House or the Manx taxpayer for any of the listed events.
• The response did not explicitly mention events for October 2018, implying none occurred in the requested category.

Data Disclosed

• August 2018
• September 2018
• October 2018
• Thursday 6 September
• Saturday 15 September
• Wednesday 19 September
• three such events
• no cost

Original Request

Dear Cabinet Office, I am writing to make a freedom of information request for all the information to which I am entitled under the relevant Freedom of Information provisions. I am an Isle of Man resident. Please send me: A listing of all times that the Lieutenant Governor's Residence was used by individuals and/or non-Government organisations in August, September or October 2018. By "listing" I mean any calendar of events that summarise the listing of events in September 2018; By "Lieutenant Governor's Residence" I mean the property (including both the building and associated land) located at Government House, Onchan, IM3 1RR; By "used by individuals and/or non-Government organisations " I mean any events that were conducted at the property where the primary event organiser (in the common English understanding of the phrase) was not either the Lieutenant Governor or a Government department. I believe that this is likely to be included with the Freedom of Information definition of 'all information held by authorities listed in Schedule 1 of the Act and which was created on or after 11 October 2011.' I would like the above information to be provided to me as electronic copies by email to me. If the files are too large to transfer by email, I am happy to attend your offices with a USB stick. If you prefer alternative arrangements, please contact me to discuss. If this request is too wide or unclear, I would be grateful if you could contact me as I understand that Manx law requires you to advise and assist requesters. If any of this information is already is already publicly available, please advise and assist me to locate the information I am seeking, with page references and URLs if necessary. If the release of any of this information is prohibited on the grounds of breach of confidence, I ask that you supply me with copies of the confidentiality agreement and remind you that information should generally not be treated as confidential if such an agreement has not been signed. 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 in writing that you have received this request. I look forward to hearing from you. Yours faithfully, **********************

Data Tables (1)

Data Tables (reformatted)

Full Response Text

Government Office Douglas Isle of Man IM1 3PN Telephone: (+44) 01624 686244 Website: www.gov.im/co

Our ref: 994597 9 October 2019

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 7 October 2019 which states:

"Dear Cabinet Office, I am writing to make a freedom of information request for all the information to which I am entitled under the relevant Freedom of Information provisions. I am an Isle of Man resident. Please send me: A listing of all times that the Lieutenant Governor's Residence was used by individuals and/or non-Government organisations in August, September or October 2018. By "listing" I mean any calendar of events that summarise the listing of events in September 2018; By "Lieutenant Governor's Residence" I mean the property (including both the building and associated land) located at Government House, Onchan, IM3 1RR; By "used by individuals and/or non-Government organisations " I mean any events that were conducted at the property where the primary event organiser (in the common English understanding of the phrase) was not either the Lieutenant Governor or a Government department. I believe that this is likely to be included with the Freedom of Information definition of 'all information held by authorities listed in Schedule 1 of the Act and which was created on or after 11 October 2011.' I would like the above information to be provided to me as electronic copies by email to me. If the files are too large to transfer by email, I am happy to attend your offices with a USB stick. If you prefer alternative arrangements, please contact me to discuss. If this request is too wide or unclear, I would be grateful if you could contact me as I understand that Manx law requires you to advise and assist requesters. If any of this information is already is already publicly available, please advise and assist me to locate the information I am seeking, with page references and URLs if necessary. If the release of any of this information is prohibited on the grounds of breach of

confidence, I ask that you supply me with copies of the confidentiality agreement and remind you that information should generally not be treated as confidential if such an agreement has not been signed. 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 in writing that you have received this request.” Please find below the information requested. August 2018 – There were no events in this category at Government House September 2018 – There were three such events at Government House: • Thursday 6 September (evening): Royal Television Society Reception The sponsor was Isle of Media. There was no cost to Government House or the Manx taxpayer. • Saturday 15 September (afternoon and evening): Wedding in the Garden This was organised and funded by Mr and Mrs Malarkey. There was no cost to Government House or the Manx taxpayer. • Wednesday 19 September (evening): Live at Home Scheme 20th Anniversary Reception The sponsor was organised by Live at Home Scheme. There was no cost to Government House or the Manx taxpayer. October 2018 – There were 2 such events at Government House: Friday 5 October (morning and afternoon): Manx National Heritage Open Days – two Government House Tours by Charles Guard. There was no cost to Government House. In addition to the events above in August, September and October 2018 the Lieutenant Governor and Lady Gozney organised 14 official events at Government House which were funded from the Government House budget.

Please quote the reference number 994597 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.

Yours sincerely