Mr John Walker
Via email: [FOI #4207 email]
December 8th, 2008
Dear Mr Walker
RFI20081292 - Freedom of Information request
Thank you for your email of November 17th asking:
1. Why was the annual conference of Britain's fourth most popular political party, the British
National Party, held November 14-16,2008 not reported on the BBC?
2. Was this another case of censorship by the corrupt Common Purpose commissars and
apparatchiks who have infiltrated the BBC?
The reference number for your request is RFI20081292.
Please note that your request is outside the scope of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the
Act”) but we are happy to provide you with some information on this occasion. The reason that
BBC News did not cover the conference is that we weren’t told about it by the party; as you may
be aware, the BNP don’t usually tell journalists when or where it will be held. Indeed, on the BNP
website the only mention of the annual conference is a report afterwards. The BBC has of course
covered the BNP in other circumstances this year.
We hope you find this helpful. Your request is outside the scope of the Act because the BBC and
the other public service broadcasters are covered by the Act only in respect of information held
for purposes “other than those of journalism, art or literature” (see Schedule I, Part VI of the
Act). However, on this occasion we’re happy to respond to your request. 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.
The BBC does not offer an internal review when the information requested is not covered by the
Act. If you disagree with our decision you can appeal to the Information Commissioner.
Contact details are: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire, SK9 5AF telephone 01625 545 700.
http://www.ico.gov.uk/
Yours sincerely
Stephanie Harris
Head of Editorial Compliance
BBC News
