Can I refuse to disclose information when requested?

Can I refuse to disclose information when requested?

In some cases it will allow you to refuse to confirm or deny whether you hold information. So you may have to disclose information in spite of an exemption, where it is in the public interest to do so. If you are refusing all or any part of a request, you must send the requester a written refusal notice.

Do you have to respond to a Freedom of Information request?

You normally have 20 working days to respond to a request. For a request to be valid under the Freedom of Information Act it must be in writing, but requesters do not have to mention the Act or direct their request to a designated member of staff.

Can you request emails under FOI?

A valid request under FOI has to meet the specific criteria. It must: be in writing (however, requests for environmental information can be verbal) provide the name of the requester and a contact address (email, postal address or fax number)

When can you refuse a FOIA request?

The FOIA provides that when processing requests, agencies should withhold information only if they reasonably foresee that disclosure would harm an interest protected by an exemption, or if disclosure is prohibited by law.

How long does it take for a freedom of information request?

Public authorities are required to respond to FOI requests no later than 20 working days after they were made. The law itself says “a public authority must comply with section 1(1) promptly and in any event not later than the twentieth working day following the date of receipt.”

What is the difference between a freedom of information request and a subject access request?

If the information you want is information relating to YOU and your personal data then a subject access request will do. If the information you want is for example about the number of car crash incidents in a given year an FOI request will do.