Council of the University of Durham

The complainant has requested correspondence concerning the 2020 Durham Students’ Union elections. The Council of the University of Durham relied on section 36 of the FOIA (prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs) to withhold the requested information. The Commissioner’s decision is that the University is entitled to rely on section 36(2)(b)(i) of the FOIA and that the balance of the public interest favours maintaining the exemption. The Commissioner does not require any further steps to be taken.