Cabinet Office

The complainant has requested information relating to correspondence between The Rt Hon Michael Gove MP and Baroness Michelle Mone OBE sent from their private email accounts. The Cabinet Office’s position is that the information is not held. The Commissioner's decision is that the Cabinet Office failed to comply with section 1(1) of FOIA due to it omitting to ask Mr Gove whether he holds information falling within the scope of the request at the time the request was made. The Commissioner requires the Cabinet Office to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation:
• Ask Mr Gove to confirm whether he holds information falling within the scope of the request and whether he held any such information at the time the request was made. 
• If no information is held (or was held at the time of the request), the Cabinet Office must confirm this in writing to the complainant. 
• If information is held (or was held at the time of the request), the Cabinet Office must issue the complainant with a fresh response. 
The public authority 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 Act and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.