Information Commissioner's Office

West Midlands Police

6 October 2016, Police and criminal justice

The complainant requested information about a former Detective Chief Inspector following what she described as his “sexual harassment of four female colleagues”. West Midlands Police (‘WMP’) initially refused to provide the information citing section 31(1)(g), law enforcement, and section 40(2), personal information. However, during the Commissioner’s investigation, WMP confirmed that it instead wished to rely on section 14(1), vexatious request, on the grounds that responding to it would be likely to cause a disproportionate and unjustified level of disruption, irritation and distress. The Commissioner’s decision is that WMP acted correctly in relying on the section 14(1) FOIA exclusion. She does not require WMP to take any steps to ensure compliance with the legislation.

FOI 14: Not upheld