Ministry of Justice
- Date 22 February 2018
- Sector Central government
- Decision(s) FOI 17: Upheld
The complainant has requested a copy of the tribunal/judge’s handwritten notes in relation to his employment tribunal hearing. The Ministry of Justice explained that it considered that the requested information was the complainant’s own personal data and that it was dealing with it under the Data Protection Act 1998. The Ministry of Justice did not explain which whether it held the information, the exemption it was relying on and why.
The Commissioner considers that Ministry of Justice has breached section 17(1) (refusal of a request) of FOIA.
The Commissioner requires the Ministry of Justice to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation.
- Issue a fresh response to the complainant, confirming whether it holds the information or is neither confirming nor denying whether it holds it, the exemption it is relying on and why.
The Ministry of Justice 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 Act and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.