Manx Gas Accounts

Summary

A request was made for Manx Gas Limited's accounts for the last financial year, but the Office of Fair Trading refused to disclose the information.

Key Facts

• The Office of Fair Trading confirmed it holds the requested accounts.
• Disclosure was refused under section 26 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015.
• The information is protected by a confidentiality clause in the Regulatory Agreement.
• Manx Gas Limited explicitly denied consent for the release of the accounts.
• The company stated the accounts are commercial and confidential.

Data Disclosed

• 2017-10-29
• 2017-11-09
• IM108591I
• section 26
• Clause 12.3
• IM4 3AS
• (01624) 686504

Exemptions Cited

• Section 26 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Actionable breach of confidence)

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Page 1 of 2

9th November 2017

Dear

Request under the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (FoIA) Ref: IM108591I - Manx Gas Accounts

Thank you for your request received on 29th October 2017. You asked for:
‘A copy of the Accounts of Manx Gas for the last financial year’. Response to your request
The OFT can confirm that information relating to this request is held. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the information requested is absolutely exempt from disclosure pursuant to section 26 of the Act, as disclosure would constitute an actionable breach of confidence. Manx Gas Limited’s accounts are provided to the OFT in confidence and the terms and conditions within Clause 12.3 of the Regulatory Agreement states: -
‘The receiving party agrees:
(a) not to disclose Confidential Information of the disclosing party to any third party for any reason or purpose whatsoever without the prior written consent of the disclosing party, save in accordance with the provisions of this Clause 12 (CONFIDENTIALITY AND NON- DISCLOSURE) of this Agreement’. The OFT has contacted the disclosing party, Manx Gas Limited, to seek written consent to release the accounts however, the company has responded by stating that the accounts are commercial and confidential and are not to be disclosed.

Office of Fair Trading Thie Slieau Whallian Foxdale Road, St John’s, Isle of Man, IM4 3AS Fax (01624) 686504 email: iomfairtrading@gov.im

Isle of Man Office of Fair Trading Oik Dellal Cair Ellan Vannin Quoting Ref:
Your Ref: IM108591I

Page 2 of 2

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 to the sender of this letter at the address above. An electronic version of the relevant complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://www.gov.im/about-the-government/freedom-of-information/freedom-of- information-review-request/ . If you would like a paper version of the complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact us and we 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; 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 rights to review is on the Information Commissioner’s website at: https://www.inforights.im/
Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact the FOI Co-ordinator. Further information about Freedom of Information requests can be found: https://www.gov.im/about-the-government/freedom-of-information/
Yours sincerely