Amendment of Schedule 2 of the Communications Act 2021 & other parts.

Summary

The requester asked for documents regarding amendments to Schedule 2 of the Communications Act 2021 concerning newspapers and sound broadcast licenses. The Cabinet Office confirmed no amendments have been made and withheld policy formulation documents under a qualified exemption.

Key Facts

• The Council of Ministers has not amended the Communications Act 2021.
• Information regarding policy formulation was withheld under Section 34 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015.
• The public interest test concluded that maintaining the exemption outweighs the benefit of disclosure at this stage.
• The policy development process is currently live and at an early stage.
• A forthcoming public consultation on the policy is planned.

Data Disclosed

• 2021-06-23
• 2021-08-10
• 1863257
• Section 34
• Communications Act 2021
• Schedule 2
• Section 5

Exemptions Cited

• Section 34 (Formulation of policy) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015

Original Request

Please supply all information regarding Schedule 2 of the Communications Act 2021 - relating to any changes in the provisions of Newspapers and their involvement in sound broadcast licenses. (In particular Section 5 of Schedule 2) Has the Council Of ministers amended this and if so provide all documents in relation to this change and the policy papers which have enabled such a change so so soon after the Act has been passed. Please provide the public consultation on the proposals to change this section. Please provide documents of any other amendments made to this act by Council of Ministers Order.

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Government Office Douglas Isle of Man IM1 3PN Telephone: (+44) 01624 686244 Website: www.gov.im/co

Our ref: 1863257 10 August 2021

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 23 June 2021 and which states:

"Please supply all information regarding Schedule 2 of the Communications Act 2021 - relating to any changes in the provisions of Newspapers and their involvement in sound broadcast licenses. (In particular Section 5 of Schedule 2) Has the Council Of ministers amended this and if so provide all documents in relation to this change and the policy papers which have enabled such a change so so [sic] soon after the Act has been passed. Please provide the public consultation on the proposals to change this section. Please provide documents of any other amendments made to this act by Council of Ministers Order." Our response to your request is as follows: "Please supply all information regarding Schedule 2 of the Communications Act 2021 - relating to any changes in the provisions of Newspapers and their involvement in sound broadcast licenses. (In particular Section 5 of Schedule 2).” While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance a Qualified Exemption applies to the information under Section 34 (Formulation of policy) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015. Section 34 is a Qualified Exemption and as such is subject to a public interest test. The public interest must be something that is of serious concern and benefit to the public at large, noting that what the public may be interested in and what is in the public interest are not necessarily the same. The matters which were considered in applying the public interest test and determining whether the information should be disclosed or withheld are as follows: Factors in favour of disclosure

• There is public interest in disclosing factual information, the purpose of which is to inform policy formulation and decision making; • There is public interest in allowing full public scrutiny of the details of the proposed policy from the outset; • Openness, transparency and increased confidence in respect of the formulation of policy, decision making and those responsible for such; • Ensuring any public debate on the proposed policy is fully informed; • There is public interest in a policy proposal which may, if agreed, depart from current practice; and • Furthering public understanding of the policy proposal and decision making in respect of such. Factors in favour of withholding • It is considered that this request is timed at a stage where policy development remains in progress, noting that once the policy has been determined, and if the qualified exemption under s34 no longer applies, the information could be considered for release; • Release of the information at the appropriate juncture will enable the policy decision to be understood in a wider context; • Objective consideration of the policy proposal must be uninhibited by subjective views or opinions; • Untimely disclosure of information in respect of the policy proposal may result in premature public debate, subsequently impacting the ability to consider options objectively at a later stage; • Public exposure of the information may compromise candid and robust discussions about the policy principles; • The need to maintain the quality of government policy making by facilitating free and frank exchanges between officers thorough consideration of all policy options, however extreme, without inducing the need to defend them; • To protect the deliberative process and provide a safe space to protect information, particularly, as in this matter, where the policy formulation process is live and at an early stage; and • To ensure that the forthcoming public consultation on the policy is undertaken objectively and is not prejudiced or undermined. The Cabinet Office, having considered the exemptions and assessed the weighting of the public interest, including the risk of harm from disclosure, has concluded that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs any benefit that could be gained by the general public by the information being disclosed at this time. “Has the Council Of ministers amended this and if so provide all documents in relation to this change and the policy papers which have enabled such a change so so [sic] soon after the Act has been passed.” The legislation has not been amended, accordingly the Cabinet Office does not hold the information that you have requested. To provide advice and assistance, a link is provided below to the Isle of Man Legislation website which shows that at this time the Council of Ministers has made no amendments to the Communications Act 2021. https://legislation.gov.im/cms/images/LEGISLATION/PRINCIPAL/2021/2021- 0003/CommunicationsAct2021_1.pdf

“Please provide the public consultation on the proposals to change this section.” Please find here the details of a public consultation: https://consult.gov.im/cabinet- office/proposed-amendment-to-the-broadcasting-act-1993 “Please provide documents of any other amendments made to this act by Council of Ministers Order." While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Cabinet Office does not hold the information that you have requested. Please quote the reference number 1863257 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