Attorney General's Office

The complainant requested information on any legal advice provided by the Attorney General’s Office (‘the AGO’) regarding the UK government’s response to the current Israel-Gaza war. The AGO would neither confirm nor deny whether it held some information, citing section 35(3) with section 35(1)(c) of FOIA. Together, these sections provide that the duty to confirm or deny holding information does not arise in relation to information which is (or would be, if held) exempt from disclosure because it relates to the provision of advice by any of the Law Officers. The AGO also confirmed that it held some information relating to advice provided by AGO officials, but that this was exempt from disclosure under section 42(1) (Legal Professional Privilege) of FOIA. Commissioner’s decision is that the AGO cited both exemptions correctly.