Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested information regarding the sale of shares in Invest NI. Some information was provided, but some was withheld on the grounds that the information was exempt under sections 36 (prejudice to effective conduct of public affairs) and 43 (prejudice to commercial interests). With respect to both exemptions the public interest favoured maintaining the exemption. The Commissioner's decision in this matter is that the section 36 exemption is engaged but that the public interest in maintaining the exemption does not outweigh the public interest in disclosing the information, that the section 43 exemption is not engaged, and that the refusal notice issued by Invest NI did not comply with the requirements of section 17. Invest NI did not, therefore, deal with the request made in accordance with Part 1 of the Act in that it has failed to comply with its obligations under section 1 as they did not fulfil the duty to confirm or deny. However, the information which was withheld was disclosed in March 2006 as part of Invest NI's annual accounts and a copy of the information was provided to the complainant at this time, and so no further action is required.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 36 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 43 - Complaint Upheld