FER0770943

The complainant has requested information about the Therfield Regulation Trust’s (the Trust) income and expenditure in respect of plans to develop a piece of land. The Trust originally argued that it was not a public authority for the purposes of the EIR. However following the complainant’s request for an internal review of that decision, the Trust accepted that it was subject to the EIR and went onto provide some information. The complainant believed that the Trust held further information relevant to his request and complained to the Commissioner. During the Commissioner’s investigation the Trust disclosed further information. However it became apparent that there was still some information that had not been disclosed. It also became clear that some of the information captured by the request was being withheld under regulation 12(5)(b) on the basis that it was protected by legal professional privilege. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Trust has breached regulation 5(1) by failing to communicate all the information to which the complainant was entitled. It also breached regulation 5(2) by failing to communicate information to which the complainant was entitled within 20 working days of the request being received. However the Commissioner finds that the Trust is entitled to rely on regulation 12(5)(b) to withhold some of the requested information. But by failing to issue a refusal notice informing the complainant of its reliance on this exception the Trust breached regulation 14. The Commissioner requires the public authority to disclose the information identified in the confidential annexe to ensure compliance with its obligations under regulation 5(1).