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24 July 2009

Africa Directorate

King Charles Street

London

SW1A 2AH

Dr. Jonathan Levy

By e-mail: [FOI #14913 email]

Dear Dr Levy,

Subject: Freedom Of Information Request: Ref: 0581-09

Thank you for your e-mail of 20 July 2009 under the Freedom of Information request in which you asked for:

`'Information on the Front for the Liberation of Cabinda also known as FLEC and/or FLEC-FAC''.

From our preliminary search I can confirm that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office holds information which falls within the description specified in your request. However, the request as currently structured is too broad and we estimate that the cost of complying with your request in full would exceed the appropriate limit of £600.

Section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act makes provisions for public authorities to refuse requests for information where the cost of dealing with them would exceed the appropriate limit. The limit has been specified in the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. For central government the appropriate limit is set at £600. This represents the estimated cost of one or more persons spending 3 ½ days working days in determining whether the Department holds the information, and locating, retrieving and extracting it. Your request as presently formulated is widely-framed and I estimate that it will take more than 3 ½ working days to locate, retrieve and extract this information. In these circumstances we are not obliged under the Act to comply with your request. You may therefore wish to refine your request to narrow its scope to bring it within the appropriate limit. One way to do this would be to place a time frame such as all information from 2008 onwards. You may also wish to clarify what type of material you are seeking, reports, briefings etc.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request an internal review, you should write to the FOI - Information Rights Management Team. E-mail: [email address] . Please note any request for an internal review must be submitted within 40 working days from the date our response was issued.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

The Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

Yours sincerely

Africa Directorate

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