Shropshire Council

The complainant has requested copies of the noise and traffic model files used by Shropshire Council in its planning application for the North West Relief Road. Shropshire Council (‘the Council’) provided some of the requested information, and relied on regulation 12(5)(c) (intellectual property rights) to withhold information relating to instructional noise and traffic model files. In follow-up correspondence to its internal review response, the Council stated that it did not hold the noise and traffic model files. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Council does not hold the requested information, nor is it held on the Council’s behalf. He also finds that the Council breached regulations 5(2) and 14 of the EIR by failing to disclose the requested information or issue a refusal notice within the statutory time limit. The Commissioner does not require further steps.