The complainant requested information relating to a judicial review of a decision by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. DARD provided the complainant with some of the requested information; however it refused to disclose legal advice in reliance upon the exemption at section 42(1) of the Act. The Commissioner finds that the section 42(1) exemption is engaged in relation to the entirety of the withheld information and that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the withheld information. The Commissioner also finds that DARD breached section 10(1) of the Act in its handling of the complainant’s request as it failed to comply with its obligations under section 1(1)(a) within the statutory time for compliance The Commissioner does not require any steps to be taken.
Section of Act/EIR and Finding: FOI 10 – Complaint Upheld, FOI 42 – Complaint Not upheld
Citations:
[2011] UKICO FS50301277
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Information
Updated: 08 May 2022; Ref: scu.530200