Livestock Births

Summary

The requester asked for total annual livestock births and imports on the Isle of Man, categorized by animal type and origin. The Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture refused to provide the data directly, citing that cattle birth and import statistics are already reasonably accessible on their official website.

Key Facts

• The request was received on 9th March 2020 and the outcome was determined on 19th March 2020.
• The authority refused the request under Section 20 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015.
• The refusal was based on the information being already reasonably accessible to the public.
• Specific data on cattle births and imports is available on the gov.im website under the agriculture section.
• The request was closed without providing the data in the response letter.

Data Disclosed

• 9th March 2020
• 19th March 2020
• 1223181
• Section 20
• Freedom of Information Act 2015

Exemptions Cited

• Section 20 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Information reasonably accessible)

Original Request

To whom it may concern, With this email I request for the following information to be   released. How many livestock animals, in total, are born on the island and imported here, per year? Where possible and practicable, please categorise the information. Such as: type of animal and whether local or imported. Thank you for your assistance in this matter. Yours sincerely, Joe callister.

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Freedom of Information Co-ordinator Corporate Services Directorate Thie Slieau Whallian, Foxdale Road, St John’s, Isle of Man, IM4 3AS Tel no (01624) 685854 Fax no (01624 685851 Email: defa@gov.im www.gov.im

Our ref: 1223181 19th March 2020

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 9th March 2020 and which states:

"To whom it may concern, With this email I request for the following information to be
released. How many livestock animals, in total, are born on the island and imported here, per year? Where possible and practicable, please categorise the information. Such as: type of animal and whether local or imported. Thank you for your assistance in this matter. "

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, under section 20 of the Act, we are not required to provide information in response to a request if it is already reasonably accessible to you, whether free of charge or on payment of a fee. In this case the information regarding cattle births and imports is available on www.gov.im/categories/business-and-industries/agriculture/cattle/ with 'Cattle Births Data' and 'Cattle imports' on the left hand side of the page.

Please quote the reference number 1223181 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

If you are unhappy with this response to your freedom of information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper

version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will be happy to arrange for this. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been concluded.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on; 1. Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015; or 2. Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.
In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision. More detailed information on your right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im. Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi.

I will now close your request as of this date.

Yours sincerely