FOI 3.10
(minutes of meetings whose existence were denied have miraculously been found after an internal review, for example). If the authority again rejects the request, you can appeal to the Case Study: An FOI request by Corporate Watch about asylum accommodation provided by private landlords in 2008 was refused by the UK Border Agency, which argued that releasing the information requested “would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of both the UKBA and those companies with whom the UKBA enters into contracts,” as this “could give rise to a potential risk to the UKBA’s ability to negotiate contracts in the future, and therefore inhibit the Agency’s ability to achieve value for money.”
After an appeal, the Information Commissioner overturned the original decision, agreeing that “there is a significant public interest in knowing details about the value and length of contacts awarded by government departments, especially those which are for such a large sum of money.” Therefore, the public interest in accessing the information requested “outweighs that in withholding it and should have been released to you in response to your original request.”
Information Commissioner. Again, be as clear and specific as you can about why you think the authority is wrong, making the public interest case for disclosure, and including copies of your request, the initial appeal and any other correspondence and emails with the authority. Remember to check the Commissioner’s website for specific advice on making requests. If the Commissioner upholds your request they will issue the authority with a notice requiring it to disclose the information to you, or to do whatever else is deemed necessary to comply. If the authority disobeys this notice they can be held to be in contempt of court and in theory, may face a fine or even imprisonment. If you’re not satisfied with the Commissioner’s decision, you can appeal to the Information Tribunal (as can the authority). The tribunal can then be challenged in the High Court but only on a point of law. Controversially, both UK and Scottish ministers have a veto which allows them to overrule certain decisions made by the Information Commissioner. The use of this veto must not be secret and may be judicially reviewed. Future changes to the FOI Act Governments tend not to be too fond of FOI regulations. New Labour seemed to regret passing the FOI Act very soon after they’d passed it - Tony Blair wrote in his memoirs that he “quakes at the imbecility” of it. At the time of writing, the Coalition Government is seeking to restrict the right to information provided by the FOI Act by making it easier for authorities to 94