London Borough of Bromley

The complainant submitted 11 requests over a period of five months, most of which related to council policies on land usage. The London Borough of Bromley relied on section 17(6) of the FOIA to refuse all 11 requests without issuing refusal notices. The Commissioner’s decision is that all 11 requests were vexatious. The London Borough was entitled to rely on section 17(6) to refuse two of the requests. The remaining nine requests should have been dealt with under the EIR but, as the requests were vexatious, the London Borough would have been entitled to rely on Regulation 12(4)(b) of the EIR (Manifestly Unreasonable) to refuse them. However, the London Borough should have issued refusal notices in each case. The Commissioner therefore finds that the London Borough breached Regulation 14 of the EIR. The Commissioner does not require any further steps.