A cabinet used to hold the ‘letters patent’ for granting Douglas city status cost the council £13,318 plus VAT.

The documents are on display in the city hall on Ridgeway Street and were given to the council by Queen Camilla on behalf of King Charles.

The cost was revealed at the local authority’s December meeting after a question posed by councillor Stephen Pitts to council leader Claire Wells.

The local authority spent £5,000 on her visit in March and wasn’t given any financial support from the government.

An earlier display cabinet for the documents was £390.

Douglas officially became a city in 2022 with its status changed by the Queen as part of her Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

Douglas Borough Council applied for city status as part of a civic honours competition, alongside 38 other local authorities from England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Crown Dependencies and overseas territories.

The council had to highlight Douglas’s unique identity and community, explaining why it felt the area deserved city recognition, and was asked to outline its Royal connections.