Information Commissioner's Office

City of York Council

24 August 2016, Local government (City council)

The complainant has requested two reports in respect of concerns he had raised with the Council. Both concerns arose out of planning issues, however the Commissioner has determined that only one of the reports in question is in itself environmental information. The other report will be referred to as the ‘internal audit report’. The Council provided a redacted copy of the internal audit report. Information was withheld from it under sections 40(2) – personal data, 41 – information provided in confidence and 30(2) – confidential sources. In respect of the second concern raised by the complainant the Council said that no report had been produced and that therefore it did not hold the requested information. The Commissioner’s decision in respect of the internal audit report is that only a limited amount of the redacted information can be withheld under either section 40, or section 41. Section 30(2) has been applied to some of the personal data also withheld under section 40. As the Commissioner concluded that this information can be withheld under section 40 it has not been necessary to consider the application of section 30(2) to the same information. In respect of the request for the other report, the Commissioner accepts that no formal report was produced. However the Commissioner has identified other information held by the Council, which taking account of the circumstances in which the request was made, can be objectively described as a report. The Commissioner is satisfied that the information in that document is captured by the request. The Commissioner requires the public authority to disclose the information from the internal audit report identified by the Commissioner in the confidential annexe which accompanies this notice and to issue a response under the EIR in respect of the report into the complainant’s second concern.

FOI 40: Partly upheld FOI 41: Partly upheld