Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: In July 2009 the House of Commons asked Sir Thomas Legg, a former civil servant, to review the payments that had been made to MPs under the Additional Costs Allowance and to deliver a report detailing his findings. Sir Thomas provided the House of Commons with the final version of his report in early 2010. The complainant requested copies of correspondence exchanged between the Sir Thomas Legg review and a particular MP during the course of this review. The House of Commons explained that although Sir Thomas was acting on behalf of a committee of the House of Commons in conducting the report, he did not hold information on behalf of the committee in question for the purposes of the Act. The House of Commons therefore refused the request on the basis that it did not hold the information requested. Having considered the circumstances of this case, the Commissioner agrees with the House of Commons that it does not hold the requested information.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 1 - Complaint Not upheld