Home Office (Central government) [2021] UKICO IC-78561 (30 September 2021)
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Home Office
The complainant has requested from the Home Office a copy of a report issued by the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) and an explanation why it was not published. He also asked for a note of a particular meeting he believed had been held to discuss the appointment of certain members to the ACMD. The Home Office refused the request, citing the exemption at section 35(1)(a) (Formulation of government policy) of the FOIA. It said that it did not hold recorded information on why the report was not published. It subsequently withdrew its reliance on section 35(1)(a) to withhold the meeting note, and said it would disclose that information. However, to date it has not done so. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Home Office was entitled to rely on section 35(1)(a) to withhold the report issued by the ACMD. She is also satisfied that it does not hold recorded information on why the report was not published. However, by failing to disclose the meeting note, which it had conceded was not exempt under section 35, the Home Office breached section 1(1) and section 10(1) of the FOIA. It also failed to complete its deliberations on the balance of the public interest within a reasonable time, thus breaching section 17(3) of the FOIA. The Commissioner requires the Home Office to disclose the information the Home Office has identified as falling within scope of part (4) of the request, redacting the personal data of any junior members of staff.
FOI 17:
Complaint upheld
FOI 10:
Complaint upheld
FOI 35:
Complaint not upheld
FOI 1:
Complaint upheld
Decision notice: IC-78561
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URL: http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKICO/2021/ic-78561.html
