UK Health Security Agency

The complainant has requested information about deceased people who had been removed from the NHS Immunisation Management Service (NIMS) database between 2021 and 2023. The UK Health Security Agency (‘UKHSA’) provided some of the requested information but relied on section 38 of FOIA (health and safety) to withhold some of the information in the detail specified. The Commissioner’s decision is that UKHSA was entitled to rely on section 38(1)(a) of FOIA to withhold some of the requested information. The Commissioner also finds that UKHSA breached section 10(1) and 17(1) of FOIA by failing to communicate the requested information or issue a section 38 refusal notice within 20 working days. The Commissioner does not require further steps.