Highways England
- Date 2 June 2020
- Sector Central government
- Decision(s) EIR 12.5.a: Upheld, EIR 14.2: Upheld
The complainant has requested from Highways England the underlying data regarding bridge condition index scores for the five years prior to his request. Highways England, having provided some summary information in response to his initial request, refused to provide the underlying data, withholding it under sections 24 and 36 of the FOIA. The Commissioner’s decision is that Highways England responded to the request under the wrong access scheme and that the response should have been in line with the EIR. She also finds that Highways England’s application of Regulation 12(5)(a) is not engaged. Additionally, the Commissioner has found that the public authority breached Regulation 14(2) of the EIR by failing to issue a refusal notice within 20 working days. The Commissioner requires the public authority to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation.
• Disclose the datasets containing individual bridge conditions for the last five calendar years prior to the request.
Information Tribunal appeal EA/2020/0205 disposed by consent.