Dear

8 December 2010

Mr Gary Tumulty

Via email to:

[email address]

Dear Mr Tumulty

Re: Request for Information - Christmas Lights - Reference number CEX/8C7KA9

Thank you for your request for information, which was received by Manchester City Council on 2 December 2010 and has been considered under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FoIA).

You asked how much the Council spent on fireworks for the Christmas Lights Switch On
You asked how much the Council paid the stars who turned on the lights
You asked how much it cost to assemble the decorations and Father Christmas
You asked whether it was Council or private contractors who assembled the lights and, if private contractors, who they were.
You asked how much the 2010 Christmas Lights Switch On cost

In response to your request I can confirm the following:

The fireworks at this year's Christmas Lights Switch On were sponsored by Moet and Chandon in return for their ability to project images on to the Town Hall
The Council did not pay any of the star guests who featured as part of the switch on event in return for them promoting their activities (records, pantomime appearances etc)
The specification attached to the recent Christmas Lights tender indicated a budget of between £350k and £400k
The Christmas Lights scheme recently went out to tender and was awarded to MK Illuminations (UK) Ltd who provide, install, maintain, derig and store the lights. Father Christmas is owned by the Council and is installed by a combination of staff from MK Illuminations (UK) Ltd and crew sourced locally from a range of disciplines such as crane operatives, scaffolders etc
The budget for this year's Christmas Lights Switch On was £50,500

These costs cannot be seen in isolation. Manchester's Christmas offer is an important stimulant to the city's economic success. An independent report found that, last year, the economic impact of the Christmas Markets was £49.9m and they attracted 1.3m visitors to the city. The Christmas lights switch on alone attracted thousands of people to the city centre.

Please note if you are not satisfied with this response you may ask for an internal review. If you wish to complain you should contact me in the first instance.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision.

The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

Yours sincerely

Margaret Stephenson

Head of Events Unit

Communications Team

Telephone:

0161 234 5258

[email address]

PO Box 532 Town Hall Manchester M60 2LA