Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested a copy of the final report of an investigation into the way in which a grievance procedure had been carried out and details relating to the nature and cost of legal claims that the Authority had settled with employees during the previous two years. The Authority refused to release the report (although significant parts of it were already in the public domain) or the other information sought, citing sections 21 (Information accessible to applicant by other means), section 38 (Health and Safety), section 40 (personal information), section 41 (information provided in confidence) and, in respect of the information relating to claims, sections 41 and 42 (Legal Professional Privilege). In relation to the report the Commissioner did not find that sections 21 and 41 applied and found that section 38 did not apply except to one specific piece of information. The Commissioner did not find that section 40 applied to that information in the report relating to individuals acting in a public capacity but said that there was personal data in a report relating to individuals in their private lives which should not be released. In respect of the claims, the Commissioner did not find that either section 41 or section 42 applied.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 21 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 38 - Complaint Partly Upheld, FOI 40 - Complaint Partly Upheld, FOI 41 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 42 - Complaint Upheld