Request
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, please provide me with a corresponding list of the responses each of these requests received, stating under what section of the act the requested information was withheld in full.
On 31st May 2024 we requested clarification on our interpretation of the request: ‘We have interpreted this request to be a request for the dataset provided in CAS-177388, with an additional column for the FOI exemptions that were cited when refusing access’, which was confirmed on 31st May 2024.
Outcome
Information provided.
Response
Please see the dataset of case and document references disclosed for FOI request CAS-177388, for requests, received between October 1st 2023 and 3rd March 2024, resolved before 4th March 2024, and which were refused in full under an FOI exemption, with an additional column for the FOI exemptions that were cited when refusing access.
Please be aware that the dataset provided to you on 5th April 2024 for FOI request CAS-177388 was based on a report that we ran on our case-management system. This report picked up cases where case handlers, upon resolving an FOI case, had entered data to indicate the request had been refused in full under an FOI exemption. Upon cross-referencing the data requested in CAS-177388 and CAS-192799, we have found that 38 of these cases were not refused in full under an FOI exemption. Rather, these requests were in reality resolved with the provision of advice and assistance, under section 16 of the FOI Act, to the requester. Please accept our clarification on this point and we apologise for any confusion this may have caused. For more information on section 16 of the FOIA, please see the following link: Section 16 – Advice and Assistance | ICO
Please note also that the additional column provided in this dataset contains 549 requests that have returned a ‘0’ response. This is because while the relevant FOI exemption would be cited in the decision notice provided, no exemption has been recorded against the case in our case-management system.
It is likely these are requests that have been refused under section 40(2) of the FOI Act as they relate to individuals who are assumed to still be living (i.e. aged under 100). Section 40(2) exempts personal information about a ‘third party’ (someone other than the requester), if revealing it would break the terms of Data Protection Legislation.