Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested information relating to an application for permission to run surface water from the roof of a particular address. Newcastle City Council (-�the council-�) provided some information and withheld other information using the exemption under section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (-�the FOIA-�), the exemption relating to third party personal data. The Commissioner considered that the request should have been handled under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (-�the EIR-�) and he therefore considered the equivalent exception under regulation 13(1). The complainant also alleged that the council had not identified all the information that it held. The Commissioner-�s decision is that the council correctly applied regulation 13(1) and on the balance of probabilities, no further information was held. The Commissioner found that the council breached regulation 5(2) for failing to respond within 20 working days and regulation 11(4) for failing to conduct an internal review. The Commissioner does not require any steps to be taken.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: EIR 5 - Complaint Upheld, EIR 11 - Complaint Upheld, EIR 13 - Complaint Not upheld