Cabinet Office v Information Commissioner & Anor

Cabinet Office v Information Commissioner & Anor

The Tribunal found that the Cabinet Office's arguments for maintaining the exception were outweighed by the public interest in disclosure, as the high-level policy had already been announced, the withheld information was not particularly sensitive, and chilling effect arguments were speculative. The Information Commissioner correctly applied the public interest test, and the appeal was dismissed.

Parties
Appellant: Cabinet Office; First Respondent: Information Commissioner; Second Respondent: Stop UK Lies and Corruption
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
09 April 2025
Procedural Posture
Appeal / Judgment
Outcome
Appeal dismissed
Legal Topics
Freedom of Information, Environmental Information Regulations, Public Interest Test, Government Transparency, Policy Formulation Vs Implementation
Administrative Law Information Rights Environmental Law Freedom of Information Environmental Information Regulations Public Interest Test Government Transparency Policy Formulation Vs Implementation

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 5 Authorities cited 11 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 4
Sign in to unlock

Parties

Cabinet Office

Appellant

Information Commissioner

First Respondent

Stop UK Lies and Corruption

Second Respondent

Procedural Posture

Appeal / Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the public interest in disclosure outweighs the exception for internal communications under Regulation 12(4)(e) of the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR)
  2. 2 Whether the withheld information relates to policy formulation or implementation
  3. 3 Whether the Information Commissioner misapplied the public interest test

Ratio Decidendi

The Tribunal found that the Cabinet Office's arguments for maintaining the exception were outweighed by the public interest in disclosure, as the high-level policy had already been announced, the withheld information was not particularly sensitive, and chilling effect arguments were speculative. The Information Commissioner correctly applied the public interest test, and the appeal was dismissed.

Court Disposition

Appeal dismissed

Orders

  • The Cabinet Office must disclose the withheld information within 30 days, subject to appropriate redactions for personal data.