Information Commissioner says practical refusal shouldn't have been applied
The Island's information commissioner says the Cabinet Office wasn't entitled to reject a Freedom of Information request about the Area Plan for the East.
The individual who submitted the request appealed against the decision after the Cabinet Office applied a practical refusal.
A previous appeal, in relation to the same request, found the Cabinet Office should disclose the information and ordered it to do so within 30 days - that ruling was made in February.
The person who asked for information was initially told by the Cabinet Office that it couldn't, after taking reasonable steps to do so, find the information.
After this was referred to the information commissioner it was determined the Cabinet Office was not entitled to claim this practical refusal as it did in fact hold the information.
The request was asking for the terms of reference for the chairman of the inquiry into the Area Plan for the East with the Cabinet Office's refusal notice stating 'no such terms were finalised'.
The information commissioner's report states that the original request didn't include the word 'finalised' and neither the public authority nor the commissioner has the power to change the wording of the request.
It also found that neither advice nor assistance was provided by the Cabinet Office to the appellant despite it being required to do so under the Freedom of Information Act.
It was determined no further action was required though as the information was given to the appellant in April.
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