The complainant has requested a copy of a financial viability assessment relating to a large housing development at the Elephant and Castle in London. London Borough of Southwark refused the request, withholding the information under the exception for the confidentiality of commercial or industrial information. During the course of the Commissioner’s investigation the council applied additional exceptions, namely those relating to intellectual property rights and the interests of the person providing the information. The Commissioner’s decision is: the exception for commercial confidentiality is engaged but the public interest favours disclosure; the exception for intellectual property rights is not engaged; and the exception for interests of the person providing the information is engaged but the public interest favours disclosure. The Commissioner requires the public authority to disclose the requested information to the complainant, excluding any personal data as defined in section 1(1) of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA).
Section of Act/EIR and Finding: EIR 12.5.c – Complaint Upheld, EIR 12.5.e – Complaint Upheld, EIR 12.5.f – Complaint Upheld
Citations:
[2013] UKICO FER0461281
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Information
Updated: 16 September 2022; Ref: scu.528510