Information Commissioner's Office

St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust

19 March 2008, Health (NHS)

The complainant requested the names of the doctors who had previously worked in a particular hospital department between the years 2000 and 2004. The public authority initially refused the request on the basis of section 12 but in subsequent correspondence confirmed that it was withdrawing its reliance on section 12 and instead refused to disclose the information citing section 40 of the Act. The Commissioner has concluded that the public authority was correct to withhold the information on the basis of section 40 but breached section 17 of the Act by failing to provide the complainant with an adequate refusal notice within 20 working days of the date of her request.

FOI 40: Not upheld