Information Commissioner's Office

Thurrock Council

13 October 2014, Local government (Borough council)

The complainant requested information about specific types of land and buildings from Thurrock Council (the Council). The Council originally stated that this information could be obtained through Local Land Charges enquiries, specifically the Con29 searches, and so was exempt under section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) as the information was reasonably accessible to the complainant through other means. During the course of the Commissioner’s investigation the Council altered its position. It stated that some of the information was available for inspection at its offices and the remainder was available through its Environment Department. No information was disclosed to the complainant. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Council has incorrectly handled the complainant’s request. The request should have been considered under the EIR rather than under the Act. Further, the complainant never asked to inspect the information, only to have it provided to him. The Commissioner requires the public authority to respond to the request in accordance with the regulations of the EIR – either by providing copies of the requested information in accordance with the Commissioner’s guidance on charging for property search information, or by issuing a valid refusal notice.

EIR 6: Upheld