Cardiff Council

The complainant requested a report into the carbon footprint of Cardiff Council’s (‘the Council’) pension fund. The Council initially refused the request but did not cite any specific exemptions. During the course of the Commissioner’s investigation, the Council disclosed some information. The Council accepted that the request should have been considered under the EIR and confirmed that it was relying on regulations 12(4)(e), 12(5)(c), and 12(5)(e) to withhold the remainder of the report. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Council failed to demonstrate that Regulations 12(5)(c) and 12(5)(e) are engaged. She finds that Regulation 12(4)(e) is engaged but that the public interest in disclosing the information overrides the public interest in maintaining the exception. In failing to consider the request under the EIR, the Commissioner also finds that the Council breached regulation 14. The Commissioner requires the public authority to disclose the withheld information.