Annual Report 2008 - Text

Refusal Grounds

The Regulations provide various grounds on which a request may be refused. These grounds include the protection of:

the confidentiality of personal information
the interests of a person who has voluntarily given information
the environment to which the information relates
the confidentiality of the proceedings of public authorities
Cabinet discussions
international relations, national defence or public security
the course of justice
commercial or industrial confidentiality and intellectual property rights.

While some of these grounds are described as "mandatory", this is misleading in that all of the exemption grounds are subject to certain restrictions, as set out in article 10 of the Regulations. For instance, requests for environmental information relating to emissions into the environment cannot, in general, be refused. In all cases, a potential exemption must be subjected to a public interest test.

Where no decision is notified by the public authority, there is provision for a right of appeal based on a deemed refusal.

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