Chief Constable Police Service of Northern Ireland
- Date 22 July 2026
- Sector Police and criminal justice
- Decision(s) FOI 10(1): Upheld, FOI 17(1): Upheld, FOI 23(5): Not upheld
The complainant has requested information relating to the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s (PSNI) assessment and management of security risks, protective measures, investigations, and associated records concerning a historical matter. PSNI refused to confirm or deny whether the information was held citing section 23(5) of FOIA (information provided by or relating to the security services).
The Commissioner’s decision is that PSNI was correct to neither confirm nor deny (NCND) it held information at requests 7 and 9 by virtue of section 23(5) of FOIA. However, the Commissioner finds that PSNI breached section 10(1) of FOIA by failing to provide its response within 20 working days to the complainant within the statutory time frame. The Commissioner also finds that PSNI breached section 17(1) by failing to issue a refusal notice within the statutory timeframe. The Commissioner does not require further steps.