Summary: The complainant requested information relating to a police investigation. The Police Service of Northern Ireland (the PSNI) refused to comply with the request, arguing that it was vexatious under section 14(1) of the Act. Following the Commissioner-™s intervention the PSNI withdrew reliance on section 14 and issued a revised refusal notice to the complainant. The Commissioner-™s decision is that the PSNI failed to comply with section 17(1) of the Act in that it failed to issue its revised refusal notice within the statutory time limit. The Commissioner does not require the public authority to take any further steps to ensure compliance with the legislation in respect of the complaint submitted to him in this case.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 17 - Complaint Upheld