Unpublished FOI requests

Summary

The requester asked for monthly statistics on FOI requests received, refused, answered, and published by the Cabinet Office over the last 12 months. The authority provided aggregate totals for the period but refused to break down the data by month, citing that they are not obliged to create information.

Key Facts

• The Cabinet Office received 56 FOI requests between 28 March 2017 and 28 March 2018.
• Of the 56 requests, 6 were withdrawn and 49 were responded to.
• The authority does not hold the requested data broken down by month.
• The response cites section 8(3) of the Act to justify not creating the monthly breakdown.
• The response cites section 20 of the Act regarding information already reasonably accessible on the government website.

Data Disclosed

• 56
• 6
• 49
• 28 March 2017
• 28 March 2018
• 3 April 2018
• 28 March 2018

Exemptions Cited

• Section 8(3) of the Act (not obliged to create information)
• Section 20 of the Act (information already reasonably accessible)

Original Request

For each of the last 12 months, how many Freedom of Information requests have been: (a) received (b) refused (c) answered (d) published on the government website

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: 395234 3 April 2018

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 28 March 2018 which states:

"For each of the last 12 months, how many Freedom of Information requests have been: (a) received (b) refused (c) answered (d) published on the government website"

Our response to your request is as follows: I have detailed below the information. Cabinet Office do not hold the information that you requested broken down by month and have provided the information that is held, under section 8(3) of the Act we are not obliged to create information. (a) received Cabinet Office has received 56 FOI requests in the last 12 months (between 28 March 2017 and 28 March 2018). (b) refused & (c) answered Of the 56 FOI requests received in the last 12 months (between 28 March 2017 and 28 March 2018), 6 were withdrawn and 49 were responded to. The response outcomes are detailed below:

(d) published on the government website

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. All of the information that you have requested is available from https://services.gov.im/freedom- of-information/search.

Please quote the reference number 395234 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 to us at:
Government Office Douglas Isle of Man IM1 3PN Telephone: (+44) 01624 686244 Website: www.gov.im/co

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