South America Team

King Charles Street

London

SW1A 2AH

Tel: 0207 008 1816

Email: [email address]

12 June 2009

Tom Feiling

by email:  [FOI #8380 email]

Dear Mr Feiling,

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST: 0153-09

I write in relation to your Freedom of Information Act request dated 23 February 2009 where you asked;

`Under the Freedom of Information Act I would like to request details of the following FCO-funded projects in Colombia including project partners, annual expenditure, anticipated outcome and results to date:

1. Project to improve evidence procedures in the Colombia Army to fight impunity;

2. Projects for military justice reform;

3. Project to improving Colombian government's ability to investigate forced disappearances;

4. Project to improve the capacity for investigative journalism in conflict and peace issues with the NGO Foundation for Free Press;

4. Project promoting freedom of information development in Colombia;

5. Project to strengthening capacity of Ombudsmans Office to protect land rights of IDPs;

6. Project promoting Colombian MoDs awareness and promotion of human rights;

7. Prison reform projects;

8. Any additional projects that the FCO has funded in Colombia since 2005.

In addition I would like details of the start and end dates of each of the above projects.''

I can confirm the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does hold information relevant to your request. I attach the information that you have requested pertaining to numbers 1-7 inclusive of your request.

I can confirm that the FCO holds information regarding item 8 of your request. However, 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, for example by specifying narrower timeframes, or particular thematic areas that you interested in. Should you wish to narrow the scope of your request we will assess the new request and whether it falls within the stipulated limit of £600 to administer.

You requested by email on 2 June an internal review on the way the FCO had handled your request. Following receipt of this letter, if you remain unhappy with the way the FCO has handled your request, I would be grateful if you could confirm that your request for internal review remains. You should contact me at the address above if you wish to complain. You have 40 working days to do so from the date our response.

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

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

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

Yours sincerely,

Signed Tony Kay

Tony Kay

South America Team

2

Foreign &

Commonwealth

Office