Paul Perrin
By email to [FOI #13712 email]
13 July 2009
Dear Mr Perrin
Freedom of Information request – RFI20090920 Thank you for your email of 25 June, under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 seeking the
following information:
all the information you hold that was used to reach the conclusion that it “does not make sense to release
details of individual stars’ fees”
Prior to the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”), neither the BBC
nor any other company or organisation that contracts talent (actors, presenters etc) in order to
produce radio or television content published the fees paid to talent, nor would have considered
doing so. Therefore there is no written policy relating to the publication of these fees.
When the Act came into force, the BBC received a number of requests asking for the
remuneration of talent, and the disclosure was considered at this time. We have set out the BBC’s
approach to disclosure of talent remuneration under the Freedom of Information Act below.
In summary, we consider that talent cost information is not covered by the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 (“the Act”);and in the event of a finding by the Information Commissioner
that it was covered by the Act, it would be exempt from disclosure under section 40(2) of the Act
because disclosure would breach the first Data Protection principle. Further, the BBC considers
that talent cost information would also be exempt under section 43(2) of the Act as disclosure
would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of the BBC. We explain our position in
relation to the scope of the Act and section 40(2) in further detail below.
You may not be aware that the BBC has submitted to the Information Commissioner’s Office its
reasoning behind this position. We attach two Decision Notices from the Information
Commissioner, which set out both the reasoning behind the BBC’s position and the Information
Commissioner’s view on the matter of talent costs. A copy of both decision notices is attached.
Scope of the Act
Part VI of Schedule 1 to FOIA provides that information held by the BBC and the other public
service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes
other than those of
journalism, art or literature”. The BBC is not required to supply information held for the
purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with
these creative activities.1 The BBC considers that this includes information about the costs
involved in creating its output, including fees paid to talent (for example actors and presenters).
Recent decisions of the Information Commissioner
The BBC notes two recent decision notices of the Information Commissioner (ref. FS50085710
and FS50067416), involving requests made for payments to BBC talent. In those cases the
Commissioner considered that those payments did fall within the scope of the Act. However, the
Commissioner decided that the information was exempt from disclosure under section 40(2) of
the Act as he felt that the payment information constituted personal data and that its disclosure
would breach the first data protection principle in the Data Protection Act, being ‘fair and lawful
processing’. The Commissioner found that the payments made to these individuals did not relate
to the performance of a public function which involves spending public money or taking influential
policy decisions. The Commissioner considered that the individuals in that case had a reasonable
expectation that their personal data would not be disclosed and it would therefore be unfair to do
so. In contrast, the information disclosed about BBC senior managers relates to individuals who
do have the types of responsibilities described above.
The BBC’s approach to this case
The BBC does not agree with the Commissioner’s decision on the scope of the Act and reserves
its position on the matter; however, the BBC considers that in the event of a similar finding by the
Commissioner in this case, the information you have requested would also be exempt under the
Act under section 40(2) as the information constitutes personal data and disclosure would breach
the First Principle (fair and lawful processing) for the reasons outlined above.
The Information Commissioner’s Office has published guidance on the disclosure of information
about salaries here:
http://www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/library/freedom_of_information/practical_application/sala
ries_v1.pdf
Appeal Rights
If you are not satisfied with this response you have the right to an internal review by a BBC senior
manager or legal adviser. Please contact us at the address above, explaining what you would like us
to review and including your reference number. If you are not satisfied with the internal review,
you can appeal to the Information Commissioner.
1 For more information about how the Act applies to the BBC please see www.bbc.co.uk/foi. Please note that this
guidance is not intended to be a comprehensive legal interpretation of how the Act applies to the BBC. Information which
is not subject to disclosure under the Act because of Schedule I might otherwise be exempt from disclosure because of
the application of other provisions of the Act.
The contact details are: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane,
Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF, telephone 01625 545 700 or see http://www.ico.gov.uk/
Yours sincerely
Rachel Hallett
BBC Information Policy & Compliance
