The complainant has requested information relating to a letter sent to them by the council regarding a planning application. Kent County Council initially refused the request under the exemption for Legal Professional Privilege – section 42 of the FOIA. During the Commissioner’s investigation it reconsidered the request under the EIR and applied the exception for the course of justice (regulation 12(5)(b)) to withhold the information. The Commissioner’s decision is that Kent County Council wrongly handled the request under the FOIA and breached regulation 5(1) and 14 of the EIR and, correctly withheld the requested information under regulation 12(5)(b). The Commissioner does not require the public authority to take any steps.
EIR 5(1): Upheld EIR 13: Upheld EIR 12(5)(b): Not upheld
Citations:
[2017] UKICO FS50677503
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Information
Updated: 21 January 2023; Ref: scu.602307
