The Isle of Man TT ‘is going ahead’ in 2022, according to the Department of Enterprise official with responsibility for the legendary motorcycle race.

The TT was hit with back-to-back cancellations in 2020 and again his year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but Rob Callister MHK says the ‘clear message’ is that the event is set to return next year.

Mr Callister was addressing uncertainty around the likelihood of the two-week motorcycling festival making a comeback in 2022 and said a concise statement from government was needed, confirming that the Isle of Man ‘is open for business’.

He also revealed that bookings for the 2022 TT were currently almost on a par with the corresponding period in 2019, when the event last went ahead.

While there has been no formal announcement from the Isle of Man Government, Mr Callister said on Manx Radio:

“I can understand the concerns of some people where they’re maybe not getting the clear message, but the clear message is that the events are going ahead in 2022."

He also told Isle of Man TV:

"The bookings for 2022 are good and we're almost in line with 2019, which is fantastic news.

"There may be some sort of confusion around the government's own messaging about what our border strategy is looking like going into 2022.

"This is something I'm pushing for and we're one of the few places that still have some restrictions; when we go into 2022, from a tourist point of view, from a TT point of view, we need a very clear message from the Council of Ministers that the Isle of Man is open for tourism and our flagship events."

Earlier this week, the organisers of the Southern 100 confirmed the event's dates for 2022, with the popular Manx race meeting set to take place from July 11-14.