Dear Sir or Madam

Please can you provide me with the following information under the
Freedom Of Information Act 2000:-

(a) addresses and rateable values of empty Commercial properties
that are within Lambeth Borough Council area; and

(b) the names of the owners of those properties referred to in (a)

Yours faithfully

Natalie Davis

London Borough of Lambeth: our disclaimer is at the end of this e-mail.
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Our reference: 112704

Dear Ms Davis,

Thank you for your Freedom of Information request below. We will
endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible and in any
extent within the statutory 20 working day deadline (i.e. by 8 June).

Yours sincerely,

Ian Goodwin
Information Governance Manager
London Borough of Lambeth
ICT Services
Finance & Resources

tel: 02079262341

www.lambeth.gov.uk

3rd floor Ivor House, 1 Acre Lane, London, SW2 5SD.
Lambeth - Making a difference

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London Borough of Lambeth: our disclaimer is at the end of this e-mail.

***********************************************************************************

Our reference: 112704

Dear Ms Davis,

Thank you for your Freedom of Information request of 8 May in which you
requested the following information:

"(a) addresses and rateable values of empty Commercial properties

that are within Lambeth Borough Council area; and

(b) the names of the owners of those properties referred to in (a)"

Please find below our response.

One of the key factors in considering your request is that if we were to
disclose a list of the empty commercial properties to you under the
Freedom of Information Act, we would be required to disclose the same
information to anyone else upon request.

We are therefore refusing your request, relying on the following
exemptions:

1. Section 31(1)(a) (Law Enforcement) - where disclosure would prejudice
the prevention of crime.

2. Section 40(2) (where disclosure would breach the provisions of the Data
Protection Act) - in relation to empty commercial properties owned by
individuals and part (b) of your request.

The section 31 exemption requires the Council to consider the public
interest in disclosure as against the public interest in withholding
information. Whilst we recognise that there is a public interest in
enabling properties to be brought back into use, we also recognise that
there is a public interest in reducing potential criminal activity in
empty properties and also the potential for them to be squatted in. On
this basis we believe that the public interest favours the maintaining of
this exemption.

The section 40 (2) (Data Protection) exemption applies here, as
individuals could argue that disclosure of the details of the properties
they own, would be unfair and in breach of the first Data Protection
Principle, on the basis that they would not expect the details on the
empty properties they own or their contact details to be provided by the
Council to anyone on request.

We are aware of the decision of the Information Tribunal in the case of
England/London Borough of Bexley v. The Information Commissioner [2007].
This case supported the view that any lists revealing [empty] properties
owned by individuals should not be disclosed. We note, however, that in
the same case it was decided that lists of properties not owned by
individuals could not attract the same reasoning in respect of the Data
Protection Act. We also note the lengthy arguments in respect of the
exemptions contained in the Act.

After careful thought we believe that the demographic constitution, levels
of crime and arson and prevalence of squatting are sufficiently different
to distinguish the Borough of Lambeth from that of Bexley and as such are
of the belief that both exemptions cited above apply.

If you are dissatisfied with the way in which your Freedom of Information
request has been dealt with you can request an internal review by
emailing: [email address] (Please quote the reference number
above) or by writing to:

Corporate Complaints Manager

Lambeth Town Hall

Brixton Hill

Brixton

SW2 1RW

If you remain dissatisfied with the outcome of the review you have a
further right to appeal to the Information Commissioner, who regulates the
implementation of the Freedom of Information Act. The Commissioner can be
contacted at the following address:

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

Enquiry line: 01625 545745

Yours sincerely,

Ian Goodwin

Information Governance Manager

London Borough of Lambeth

ICT Services

Finance & Resources

tel: 02079262341

www.lambeth.gov.uk

3rd floor Ivor House, 1 Acre Lane, London, SW2 5SD.

Lambeth - Making a difference

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