Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested information regarding Foreign Office legal adviser, Elizabeth Wilmshurst's resignation as well as advice given by her or her colleagues prior to the invasion of Iraq. The complainant advised the Commissioner that the response provided by the public authority was outside 20 working day deadline, while the public authority advised the complainant that certain information within the scope of the request was exempt and explained that additional time would be required to consider the public interest test. The complainant was not satisfied that the additional time taken was reasonable. The Commissioner has concluded that the public authority failed to comply with section 1(1)(a) within the 20 working day deadline in respect of some of the information requested. In doing so it breached section 10(1) of the Act. It also breached sections 1(1)(b) and 10(1) in failing to supply some of the requested information within 20 working days. In relation to information subject to section 40 the public authority failed to provide a refusal notice compliant with section 17(1)(a) and (b). The Commissioner is satisfied that the additional time taken to consider the public interest test was reasonable in the circumstances and the public authority has complied with section 17(3) in issuing a full response to the complainant on 20 May 2005. The Commissioner has therefore not ordered the public authority to take any remedial steps.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 1 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 10 - Complaint Upheld