Information Commissioner's Office

BBC

25 March 2008, Other

The complainant requested details of payments made by the BBC to a range of personalities, actors, journalists and broadcasters. The BBC refused to provide the information on the basis that the information was held for the purposes of journalism, art and literature. Having considered the purposes for which this information is held, the Commissioner has concluded that the requested information was not held for the dominant purposes of journalism, art and literature and therefore the request falls within the scope of the Act. Therefore the Commissioner has decided that in responding to the request the BBC failed to comply with its obligations under section 1(1). Also, in failing to provide the complainant with a refusal notice the Commissioner has decided that the BBC breached section 17(1) of the Act. However, the Commissioner has also concluded that the requested information is exempt from disclosure by virtue of section 40(2) of the Act.

FOI 1: Upheld