Charles Thomson v The Information Commissioner

Charles Thomson v The Information Commissioner

The public interest in maintaining the section 36(2)(c) FOIA exemption does not outweigh the public interest in disclosure of the requested self-assessment document, suitably redacted to remove personal data. The Tribunal found that transparency and accountability regarding race equality, accessibility, diversity, and inclusion outweigh the speculative risk of prejudice to future peer review processes.

Parties
Appellant: Charles Thomson; Respondent: The Information Commissioner
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
15 August 2024
Procedural Posture
Information Rights Appeal / First Tier Tribunal Decision
Outcome
Appeal allowed
Legal Topics
Section 36 FOIA Exemption, Public Interest Test, Disclosure of Information, Local Government Transparency
Freedom of Information Administrative Law Section 36 FOIA Exemption Public Interest Test Disclosure of Information Local Government Transparency

Case Brief

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Parties

Charles Thomson

Appellant

The Information Commissioner

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Information Rights Appeal / First Tier Tribunal Decision

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the public interest in maintaining the section 36(2)(c) FOIA exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure of the Council's self-assessment document

Ratio Decidendi

The public interest in maintaining the section 36(2)(c) FOIA exemption does not outweigh the public interest in disclosure of the requested self-assessment document, suitably redacted to remove personal data. The Tribunal found that transparency and accountability regarding race equality, accessibility, diversity, and inclusion outweigh the speculative risk of prejudice to future peer review processes.

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed

Orders

  • The public interest in maintaining the exemption within section 36(2) FOIA is outweighed by the public interest in disclosure of specified parts of the requested information.
  • The rule 14(6) direction regarding the redacted section of the qualified person’s opinion is set aside; the information at box 11 in the qualified person’s opinion shall be disclosed to the appellant within 42 days.