FOI 2-24: Hospitality spend, including food and drink in the building

Our Ref: FoI 2-24

12 February 2024

 

Freedom of Information Act 2000

I am writing to confirm that the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission (Assembly Commission) has processed your request dated 15 January 2024 in line with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). You requested the following information:

a. “Over the past two years, can Stormont indicate how much was spent on hospitality, including food and drink in the building?

The Assembly Commission has spent £42,960.05 (2022) and £84,564.11 (2023) respectively on hospitality, including food and beverages.

b. Please break that into food and drink, including how many bottles/cans of alcohol and the type of alcohol, for 2022 and 2023.

2022

The Assembly Commission does not hold a breakdown of expenditure by food and beverage for the year 2022. This information was held and managed by a third-party supplier no longer contracted by the Assembly Commission.

2023

The Assembly Commission holds a breakdown of expenditure by food and beverage for the year 2023 as outlined below;  

Year	Total	Food	Beverage / Alcohol
2023	£84,564.11	£80,295.76	£4,248.35 / Alcohol: 183 x bottles of wine

c. Can you break down the ten highest costs for events and list what the nature of the event?

The Assembly Commission does not hold an event breakdown for the year 2022. This information was held and managed by a third-party supplier no longer working for the Assembly Commission.

The ten highest costs incurred for events held at Parliament Buildings in 2023 are outlined at Appendix A below.

d. Does Stormont have a wine cellar / collection of alcoholic spirits?

Parliament Buildings does not have a wine cellar or hold a collection of alcoholic spirits.  Parliament Building does have a secure storage room used by a third-party supplier for the storage of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages for use at Assembly Commission’s events, private functions and public dining. The beverages held in the store are not owned by the Assembly Commission but are supplied and managed by the third-party supplier, which invoices individuals and organisations for the beverages consumed at events or public dining.

e. If so, please specify how much was spent on those over the past two years?

The Assembly Commission does not hold this information.

You have the right to request an internal review by the Assembly Commission and if you wish to do so, please write to me at the above address. If after the internal review you are still unhappy with the response, you may appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF which will undertake an independent review.

The Assembly Commission may publish details of your FOI request and its official response within the organisational disclosure log. The request will be completely anonymised and you will not be identified in any way. This is to meet the requirements as laid out by in the agreed publication scheme with the Information Commissioners’ Office.

Yours sincerely

Data Protection and Governance Officer