Horncliffe Parish Council

The complainant has requested information in relation to negotiations between a developer and the council into the purchase of a section of land. The council argues that the request is vexatious and applied section 14 of the FOI Act. The Commissioner’s decision is that the council was not correct to apply section 14 to refuse the request. The Commissioner requires the public authority to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation. To issue a fresh response to the complainant’s request as required by section 1 of the FOI Act, without relying upon section 14 of the Act.