Cabinet Office

The complainant submitted a request to the Cabinet Office seeking information about the process Sir Craig Oliver followed in seeking permission for his memoir Unleashing Demons: The Inside Story of Brexit. The Cabinet Office’s initial response to the complainant confirmed that it held some information falling within the scope of the request, albeit no actual information was disclosed. However, in its internal review response the Cabinet Office stated that it did not hold any information. The complainant argued that the Cabinet Office was likely to hold information falling within the scope his request. During the course of the Commissioner’s investigation, it became evident that there was a dispute between the Cabinet Office and the complainant as to how his request should be interpreted. The Commissioner has concluded that the complainant’s interpretation of the request, rather than the Cabinet Office’s interpretation, is the correct and objective one.