Mr Andrew Watson

Email: [FOI #27977 email]

Reference: FOICR 13892/10

Date: 25 February 2010

Dear Mr Watson

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST

Thank you for your email of 28 January, in which you ask for information on the National Identity Service's Public Panel. Your request has been handled as a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

You asked:-

You have appointed members of the public to a "Public Panel" related to the National Identity Scheme. Please send me:

1. The dates and locations of all meetings of the Public Panel

     regional groups held to date.

2. The minutes of all meetings of the Public Panel regional groups

     held to date.

I can confirm that the Identity and Passport Service (IPS) holds the information that you requested. However, after careful consideration we have decided that the information is exempt from disclosure under section 22 of the Freedom of Information Act. This provides that information can be withheld where the information is held by a public authority with a view to it's publication by the authority at some future date.

After careful consideration we have decided that this information is exempt from disclosure by virtue of Section 22(1) of the Freedom of Information Act. Section 22 relates to future publication and it is our intention to publish the information that you have requested by Spring of this year. The minutes of all the meetings along with associated papers will be published on the Public Panel pages of our external IPS website.

If you are dissatisfied with this response you may request an independent internal review of our handling of your request by submitting a complaint within two months to the address below, quoting reference FOICR 13892/10.

Information Access Team

Home Office
Ground Floor, Seacole Building

2 Marsham Street

London SW1P 4DF

e-mail: [email address]

As part of any internal review the Department's handling of your information request will be reassessed by staff who were not involved in providing you with this response. Should you remain dissatisfied after this internal review, you would have a right of complaint to the Information Commissioner as established by section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act.

Yours sincerely

H Reid

Parliamentary & Correspondence Management Team

Passport Adviceline: 0300 222 0000 (07.00 - 23.00 seven days a week).

Email us at [email address]. Visit our website at www.ips.gov.uk.

2

Headquarters

Identity and Passport Service

Parliamentary & Correspondence Management Team

Chief Executive's Office

4^th Floor, Peel Building

2 Marsham Street

London

SW1P 4DF

Tel (0207) 035 6054

Fax (0870) 336 9175

Email [email address]

Web www.ips.gov.uk