Information Commissioner's Office

Home Office

13 December 2017, Central government

The complainant has requested information from the Home Office regarding the Undercover Policing Inquiry. To date he has not received a substantive response. The Commissioner’s decision is that, although it has complied with section 17(1) FOIA in stating which exemption is to be relied upon, by failing to complete its public interest test considerations within a reasonable time period the Home Office has breached section 17(3) FOIA. The Commissioner also found breaches of sections 1(1) and 10(1) FOIA. The Commissioner requires the Home Office to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation: issue a substantive response to the complainant’s request, either disclosing the requested information or issuing a refusal notice which includes the outcome of any public interest considerations.

FOI 1: Upheld FOI 10: Upheld FOI 17: Upheld