Summary: On 28 February 2011 the complainant made a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the -˜Act-™) to Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (-˜the Trust-™) for the number of people who had been dismissed annually over the last three financial years. The Trust applied section 21(1) explaining that the complainant could request the information through his own Employment Tribunal case and therefore that the information was reasonably accessible to him through other means. It upheld its position through an internal review. During the course of his investigation, the complainant did receive the requested information through the route the Trust identified. However, he asked the Commissioner to make a decision about the operation of section 21(1) of the Act. The Commissioner finds that section 21(1) was not applied appropriately by the Trust, and that consequently there were a number of procedural breaches. As the complainant has received the withheld information, he has not ordered any remedial steps to be taken in this case. Information Tribunal appeal EA/2011/0236 struck out.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 21 - Complaint Upheld