Cabinet Office spent more than £92k on North and West Area Plan inquiry last summer

It comes after Tynwald rejected the plan for the area at the end of last month

The Cabinet Office has confirmed it spent £92,321.34 on holding a public inquiry into the Draft North and West Area Plan in July last year. 

This includes advertising, preparation, organisation and running of the inquiry.

It comes after Tynwald voted against the North and West Area Plan at the end of November, which would've been a framework to support future development in the area.

The inquiry was run over nine working days - it spent five days in Ramsey which included an evening session and then spent four days in Peel.

It was organised by the Cabinet Office but was chaired by an independent planning inspector from the UK over a two-week period.

The Cabinet Office confirmed it spent £32,924 on advertising, printing, web hosting and legal fees as part of the inquiry.

It had a dedicated website for those interested and attending where maps and consultation documents were uploaded - as well as the full draft plan.

It also spent £59,397.34 on organising and running the inquiry.

The inquiry was split and held at the Masonic Hall in Ramsey and at Queen Elizabeth II High School in Peel.

No specific number was given for officer expenses, but the department says that all figures include expenses and mileage claims for both temporary workers and the temporary full-time employment of part-time staff.

But it excluded regular full-time salaries.

It also confirmed that £5,949.10 was spent preparing the draft plan as published in 2022.