The complainant requested information relating to an arrest for drone use at Aintree racecourse, specifically the offence details and the amount of money seized. Merseyside Police initially refused the request citing various subsections of section 30 of FOIA, (the exemption for investigations and proceedings conducted by public authorities). Following an internal review, Merseyside Police maintained that section 30 applied, but also cited section 21 (information accessible to applicant by other means) and section 40 (personal information). Both sections 21 and 40 of FOIA were cited for part of the requested information, namely the specific offence the individuals were arrested for. For the reasons set out in this notice, the Commissioner’s decision is that neither section 21 nor section 40 is engaged. Of the subsections in section that were cited, only 30(1)(a)(i) was engaged. In that respect, the Commissioner considers, for the sum of money seized, that the balance of the public interest favours maintaining the exemption. However, in relation to the offence committed, the balance of the public interest favours disclosure of this part of the request. The Commissioner requires Merseyside Police to take the following step to ensure compliance with the legislation: Disclose the offence details for which the arrests were made. Merseyside Police must take these steps within 35 calendar days of the date of this decision notice. Failure to comply may result in the Commissioner making written certification of this fact to the High Court pursuant to section 54 of the Act and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.
FOI 21: Complaint upheld FOI 40: Complaint upheld FOI 30: Complaint partly upheld
Citations:
[2022] UKICO 133003
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Information
Updated: 21 January 2023; Ref: scu.683056
