Whilst accepting the question of principle, from a legal standpoint the definitions within the DP Act do not differentiate between different types of personal data. The issue of public personal information and private personal information arises where it is not possible to release data in response to a data subject access request without releasing data relating to other individuals. In such cases the data controller is required to consider whether it is reasonable in all the circumstances to do so. Under the FOI Act, as far as I am aware there is no similar consideration. If my interpretation of the FOI Act is correct then personal data cannot be disclosed where it would contravene any of the data protection principles (S40) and we therefore need to ensure (amongst other requirements) that a Schedule 2 condition is met before including any personal data in publication schemes.
However, I would welcome any correction of this view from the legal experts on the list.
Colin Atkinson
University of Leicester
-----Original Message-----
From: This list is for those interested in Data Protection issues
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Healy, Susan
Sent: 26 September 2003 12:24
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Committee Membership
As I understand it, the ICO sees a conceptual difference between public
personal information and private personal information, so there is no
absolute bar on release of names of officials acting in an official
capacity, and it depends on the type of information and the circumstances. I
am going by what I heard the previous Commissioner say at various meetings
and conferences.
Susan Healy
National Archives
-----Original Message-----
From: Sarah Westwood [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 26 September 2003 09:46
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [data-protection] Committee Membership
This puts more succinctly what I was trying to say in my earlier post and I
would define where the line is drawn as follows: officers of a public
authority who have executive powers of action should be held accountable
for those actions, but a junior employee who basically does what s/he is
told should not. This should be reflected in the organisation's policy on
whose names are made public.
Sarah Westwood
Records Management Officer
Girton College
Cambridge CB3 0JG
Tel: 01223 338976
Fax: 01223 338896
Website: www.girton.cam.ac.uk
--On 26 September 2003 09:34 +0100 "G.M.Waters" <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> Owen,
> I think this is a tension between the FoI & DP Act, which I don't think
> has been satisfactorily resolved. The OIC's rep at the model PS scheme
> meetings said that she would expect the names of senior people to be made
> available but not necessarily junior ones. Unless there is a shared
> definition of what those terms mean, it is not very helpful. Our practice
> is not to include names in minutes although it is to include the names of
> attendees. Since our scheme is to be web-based, our plan is to offer an
> opt -out to objectors, which we recognise is not going to be easy to
> implement. Gail Waters
> Open University
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Owen Parry [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: 25 September 2003 10:07
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Committee Membership
>
>
> Colleagues
>
> A possible area of conflict between the DPA and FOI has been brought to my
> attention and although I give my views below, I'd welcome any comments.
>
> Issue: We are beginning to publish the minutes and related papers of some
> University committees on our web site. Some members of those committees
> (academics at HE institutions) are concerned that the publication of those
> minutes will reveal the fact of their membership which they consider to be
> personal information.
>
> Some concerns have been expressed that it would be possible for a
> complaining student to see who the members of our Academic Board were who
> disallowed his appeal and approach them directly to harrass them (although
> the contents of any such discussion would not appear in the minutes, being
> classed as 'reserved business' under an obvious exemption).
>
> My view:
> My view is that although membership of a committee might be deemed
> personal information, the whole point of the FOI Act is to ensure that
> the conduct of public bodies is open and transparent and that the days of
> anonymous committees in dark smoke filled rooms are numbered. As the
> details and membership of our committees are published elsewhere
> (University Calendar), it is illogical to suppress either minutes of
> committees or details of who attended a particular meeting. Any student
> who wanted to harrass committee members would simply borrow the Calendar
> from his institution's library.
>
> Further, the fact that the Information Commissioner has approved the model
> publication scheme for HEIs which requires committees details and minutes
> to be included also indicates that he does not consider there to be a
> conflict with the DPA ( or if he does, then has decided in favour of
> publication).
>
> Any contributions ?
>
>
>
> Owen Parry
> Pennaeth Cyfrifiadura Gweinyddol / Head of Administrative Computing
> Prifysgol Cymru / University of Wales
> Tel: (029) 2038 2656 Ffacs/Fax: (029) 2039 6040
>
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Sarah Westwood
Records Management Officer
Girton College
Cambridge CB3 0JG
Tel: 01223 338976
Fax: 01223 338896
Website: www.girton.cam.ac.uk
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