Information Commissioner's Office

Home Office

10 January 2018, Central government

The complainant has requested information about child sexual abuse investigations. By the date of this notice, the Home Office has yet to provide a substantive response to this request. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Home Office has breached sections 1 (general right of access) and 10 (time for compliance) of the FOIA by failing to provide a valid response to the request within 20 working days of receipt. The Commissioner requires the Home Office to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation:provide the complainant with a response to her request which complies with the requirements section 1(1) of the FOIA, or issue a valid refusal notice. The Home Office must take these steps within 35 calendar days of the date of this decision notice. Failure to comply may result in the Commissioner making written certification of this fact to the High Court pursuant to section 54 of the FOIA and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.

FOI 1: Upheld FOI 10: Upheld