Our FoI project manager attended a conference last week and some of the issues that were being debated on this list last week were brought up.
* According to Phil Catling from the Information Commissioner's Office any personal information is not disclosable under FoI regardless of where it is held (on a PC, in a drawer at work etc); work held at home is however considered to be 'held' by an authority and needs to be disclosed (subject of course to any exemptions.)
* The ICO will only take a hard line and prosecute if they have received a complaint and the authority continued to refuse the release of information requested. In very few cases would an individual be prosecuted.
* With regard to back up tapes and whether they would have to be searched for each request, the answer was no as a complete final record should be enough to satisfy the enquirer. The exception is if someone asks for ALL information relating to a particular topic, including previous drafts.
May the debate continue......
Alison Drew
Freedom of Information Project Officer
I.T Services
023 9268 8325
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