Department of Health (NI)

The complainant requested information which the Department of Health had received from the Northern Ireland Covid-19 Strategic Intelligence Group on face coverings.
The Commissioner’s decision is that the Department of Health (“the DoH”) failed to respond to the request within 20 working days and has therefore breached section 10 of the FOIA.
The Commissioner requires the DoH to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation.
• Issue a substantive response, in accordance with its obligations under the FOIA, to the request.
The DoH must take these steps within 35 calendar days of the date of this decision notice. Failure to comply may result in the Commissioner making written certification of this fact to the High Court pursuant to section 54 of the FOIA and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.