Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested from the General Medical Council (GMC) a copy of employer comments that it might have received from a Hospital Trust in relation to a specified consultant. The GMC initially responded to the request in accordance with section 1(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the -�Act-�), although it later sought to rely on section 40(5)(b)(i) at the internal review stage. The Commissioner has concluded that section 40(5)(b)(i) is engaged, as to confirm or deny whether the GMC held the requested information would disclose the personal data of the consultant, in contravention of the first data protection principle. The GMC is therefore not required to take any steps. The Commissioner, however, finds the GMC to have breached section 17(1)(b) in its processing of the request.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 17 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 40 - Complaint Not upheld