Cabinet Office
- Date 21 May 2012
- Sector Central government
- Decision(s) FOI 10: Upheld, FOI 36: Not upheld
The complainant requested information concerning allegations of misconduct by special advisers and any investigation of these. The Cabinet Office refused to disclose this information, citing the exemptions provided by the following sections of the FOIA: 36(2)(b)(i) (inhibition to the free and frank provision of advice), 36(2)(b)(ii) (inhibition to the free and frank exchange of views) and 36(2)(c) (other prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs). The Commissioner’s decision is that the Cabinet Office applied these exemptions correctly and so it is not required to disclose this information. However, the Commissioner also finds that the Cabinet Office breached the FOIA in responding to the request late.