Information Commissioner's Office

North Western and North Wales Fisheries Committee

19 November 2007, Local government (District council)

The complainant requested from the authority “copies of the Committee’s annual statements of importation into and harvesting from each mussel lay in the East Menai Fishery, and where the imports came from.” The complainant further clarified that the information was required for each of the six fishery areas over the preceding ten year period. The authority refused the request by virtue of sections 41 and 43 of the Freedom of Information Act, stating that the disclosure of the information would “prejudice the commercial interests of the lease holders” and that the “information requested was supplied in confidence.” The Commissioner sought copies of the withheld information, a sample of which was provided by the authority. The Commissioner’s decision is that the exemption in section 41 is not engaged. He has also decided that section 43 is not engaged and that the information requested should therefore be released. The Commissioner finds that the authority has not complied with section 10(1) of the Act. Information Tribunal appeal number EA/2007/0133 has been dismissed.

FOI 41: Not upheld