Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested an agenda item which was discussed at an Annual General Meeting (an -�AGM-�). This was refused at the time of request because it would be available in the future, to a limited audience, once it had been approved. The complainant was subsequently advised that he could not be provided with a copy as it was in -�draft-� and not available to the public. Following its approval the complainant was later offered a copy of the document provided he paid for any disbursements. The complainant has advised that he wanted a copy of the draft document as it existed at the time of his request, not the item which was later offered. The Information Commissioner-�s decision is that the public authority failed to issue an adequate refusal notice, that the item requested was not the item which would be made available in the future, and that being in -�draft-� form does not necessarily make information exempt from disclosure under FOIA.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 1 - Complaint Upheld