Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office FCDO (previously FCO)

The complainant submitted a six part request to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) seeking information about a bombing by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. The FCDO refused parts 1 to 5 of the request on the basis of section 12(1) of FOIA. It provided a copy of the document sought by part 6 of the request but redacted this on the basis of sections 23(1) (security bodies) and section 24(1) (national security), applied in the alternative, section 26 (defence), section 27 (international relations) and section 42 (legal professional privilege). The Commissioner found that section 12(1) applied, but that the FCDO breached section 16(1) by not providing sufficient advice and assistance. It also breached section 17(5) by issuing a delayed response to the request. The Commissioner has also concluded that some of withheld information is not exempt from disclosure.