Tony writes over on his blog about several of his FOI requests.
It seems he is having a better time than myself with DETI.
Exactly 20 (business) days ago I emailed DETI NI to request information pertaining to the contract they awared BT to provide 100% Broadband coverage for Northern Ireland before the end of 2005.
That date is getting close and so far it isn’t there. So I wondered what penalties were in the contract if BT failed to achieve the target date. This information is also very much in the public interest, so I intended to publish it here also.
So the 20 days have come and gone and DETI NI are a no show. Thus I have a right to complain directly to the Information Commissioner – "failure to respond to your request within 20 working days (or failure to explain why longer than 20 working days is needed)". But they also make a point of saying you needed to supply a copy of the complaint to the body also, so to ensure DETI NI have a chance to rectify the situation I am complaining to them first. I’m not sure how long I’ll leave the complaint with them but I expect they should come back to me pretty quickly. This time, instead of emailing, I used their online form so they have no excuses.
I have enclosed a copy of the original request below, and the complaint below that.
| To: information@detini.gov.uk Subject: Freedom of Information Act: Request for details of BT 100% Broadband contract Date: Thu, 15 Sep 2005 14:05:17 +0100 Dear sirs, In March 2004, DETI NI awarded a contract to BT to deliver 100% broadband "By the end of 2005 every household and every business in Northern Ireland, This request under the FoI is for the following information: 1. Copy of the contract awarded to BT and any subcontractors I believe that the nature of this contract and its vital importance to the I can be reached via: Email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Telephone: xxx xxxx xxxx Thank you for your attention to this matter. Yours faithfully, Paul Gregg PS. Your document explaining how to make a FoI request does not |
Pursuant to the Publication Scheme and your duty onder the Freedom of Information Act I am writing to complain about your failure to acknowledge or respond to my FOI request of Thursday 15 September 2005, 20 business days ago. Mail server logs confirmed that your system accepted the email which was sent to Yours faithfully, Paul Gregg |
Apparently only public bodies (ie the NHS or the Police or the Government) have to respond to Freedom of Information requests. Companies like BT or DETI NI have no legal obligation to provide full information regarding anything except any personal information they may hold about you, even then they can levy a moderate fee.
Thanks for replying. However, DETI NI are a public body and so have to reply.
In fact, I got the reply this morning – I am going to scan/OCR the letter and post it.