Dear Mr Edwards,

     I find your comments on a correspondence address very strange. The
     Ministry of Justice website is very clear on this point in their
     guidance
     (http://www.justice.gov.uk/guidance/foi-procedural-what.htm)
     saying, in the section entitled "Return address": "If a request is
     received by email and no postal address is given, the email address
     should be treated as the return address". I have no doubt that the
     OIC will reiterate this, particularly as the Hansard records show
     that this question was raised several times in the debates over the
     Bill, and each time assurance was given that email would be
     acceptable.

     In the vast majority of cases sending information by email that is
     already in electronic form will be easier and cheaper for the
     authority than posting hard-copy. And, on a Data Protection note,
     requesting personal details that are not required (e.g. a physical
     address when the response will be by email) would appear to be a
     breach of the Third Principle.

     That said, I thank you for releasing the information anyway despite
     not yet having received guidance from the OIC, and I trust you will
     do the same with my other requests.

     I will certainly let you know if I spot any errors in the
     presentation.

     Richard

    

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