Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust

The complainant has requested information regarding public participation and on legal costs. The above public authority (“the public authority”) stated that it did not hold some of the information. It withheld the remaining information relying on section 36 (prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs), section 40(2) (personal data) and section 41 (actionable breach of confidence) to withhold information. The Commissioner’s decision is that the public authority does not hold any information within the scope of element [1]. In respect of element [2], he is satisfied that the public authority has appropriately applied sections 40(2) and 41 of FOIA. The Commissioner considers that section 36 is only engaged in respect of a small quantity of information but, where it is engaged, the public interest favours maintaining the exemption. Where the exemption is not engaged, the information does fall within the scope of the request. The public authority breached sections 10 and 17 of FOIA in responding to the request. The Commissioner requires the public authority to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation.

Keywords: legal claims