Mid Sussex District Council

The complainant has requested information about the decision making process which led to the selection of certain land sites for development. Mid Sussex District Council disclosed some information and withheld other information under the exemption for prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs – section 36 of the FOIA. During the Commissioner’s investigation the council reconsidered the request under the EIR and applied the exception for internal communications (regulation 12(4)(e)) to withhold the same information. The Commissioner’s decision is that Mid Sussex District Council has correctly withheld information under regulation 12(4)(e) and that the public interest favours maintaining the exception but that, in handling the request under the FOIA, it breached regulation 5(1) and regulation 14(1) of the EIR. The Commissioner does not require the public authority to take any steps. Information Tribunal appeal EA/2020/0216 dismissed.