Cabinet Office
- Date 30 August 2016
- Sector Central government
- Decision(s) FOI 23: Not upheld
The complainant submitted a request to the Cabinet Office for a copy of the legal advice referred to in the Prime Minister’s announcement that a Royal Air Force remotely piloted aircraft had killed three people near Raqqa in Syria. The Cabinet Office sought to withhold the requested information on the basis of the exemptions contained at the following sections of FOIA: 23(1) (security bodies), 26(1) (defence), 27(1) (international relations), 35(1)(c) (Law Officers’ advice), 40(2) (personal data) and 42(1) (legal professional privilege). The Commissioner has concluded the withheld information is exempt from disclosure on the basis of section 23(1) of FOIA. This decision notice is currently under appeal to the Tribunal.