6 May 2009

Americas Directorate

WH2.324

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

King Charles Street

London SW1A 2AH

Tel: 020 7 008 2606

Fax: 020 7 008 2476

E-mail: [email address]

Mr Liam Craig-Best

By email: [FOI #7850 email]

Dear Mr Craig-Best,

YOUR FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST: 0108-09

Thank you for your request for information which we received on 09 February 2009, in which you asked for:

“copies of the FCO briefings supplied to former FCO Minister Kim Howells in relation to his visit to Colombia in late 2007.”

I can confirm that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) holds information relevant to your request. However, I wish to advise you that some of the information cannot be disclosed for the reasons given below. A copy of the information which can be disclosed is attached.

Some of the information is exempt under section 23(1) of the Act (information supplied by, or relating to, bodies dealing with security matters). Section 23 (1) is an absolute exemption and does not require the application of the public interest test in favour of disclosure.

Some of the information is exempt under section Section 26 (1) (b) (information likely to prejudice the operational effectiveness of Armed Forces of the Crown or any armed forces with whom they are working). The decision on whether to invoke this exemption is based on a public interest test. Factors in favour of release are the benefits of increase in public knowledge that releasing the information will have in terms of informing public debate. However, these benefits need to be balanced against the risks that releasing the information could have on the success of military operations and the security of our troops. In this case it was judged that the potential risks associated with releasing the information outweighed the benefits.

Some of the information you requested is exempt under section 27(1) (a) of the Act (relations between the UK and any other state) as disclosure would be likely to prejudice relations between the United Kingdom and Colombia. This exemption requires the application of a public interest test. However, the effective conduct of international relations depends upon maintaining trust and confidence between Governments and international organisations. If the United Kingdom does not maintain this trust and confidence, its ability to protect and promote UK interests through international relations will be hampered. For these reasons we consider that the public interest in maintaining this exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

Some of the information you have requested is personal data relating to a third party, the disclosure of which would contravene one of the data protection principles. In such circumstances sections 40(2) and (3) of the Freedom of Information Act apply. In this case, our view is that disclosure would breach the first data protection principle. This states that personal data should be processed fairly and lawfully. It is the fairness aspect of this principle which, in our view, would be breached by disclosure. In such circumstances section 40 confers an absolute exemption on disclosure. There is, therefore, no public interest test to apply.

In addition, some of the information you have requested is exempt under section 41 (1)(b) - disclosure of information to the public by the public authority holding it would constitute a breach of confidence actionable by that or any other person. Section 41 confers an absolute exemption on disclosure. There is, therefore, no public interest test to apply.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. You are free to use it for your own purposes, including any non-commercial research you are doing and for the purposes of news reporting. Any other re-use, for example commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright holder. Most documents supplied by the FCO will have been produced by government officials and will be protected by Crown Copyright. You can find details on the arrangements for re-using Crown Copyright on the Office of Public Sector Information website.

Information you receive which is not subject to Crown Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. You must ensure that you gain their permission before reproducing any third party (non-Crown Copyright) information.

In keeping with the spirit and effect of the Freedom of Information Act, all information is assumed to be releasable to the public unless exempt. The information we have supplied to you may now be published on our website together with any related information that will provide a key to its wider context.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint, or request a review of our decision you should write to me at the above address. You have 40 working days to do so from the date of our response.

If you are not content with the outcome of that internal review, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner's Office for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaint procedure provided by the FCO. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

The Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF.

Yours sincerely,

Tony Kay

South America Team

2

Foreign &

Commonwealth

Office