misuse of the Terrorism Act 2000

Dear Mr Aleck,

Freedom of Information Request Reference No: 2009050005795
I write in connection with your request for information which was
received by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) on 21/05/2009. I note
you seek access to the following information:

"Please outline
a) the number of complaints of misuse of the Terrorism Act 2000, and
b) the number of disciplinary procedures brought against personnel for
misuse of powers afforded to them under the Terrorism Act 2000 (whether
they originated from a complaint or not) broken down by year and outcome
if known.
Any additional information you have would be appreciated. "

Your request will now be considered in accordance with the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 (the Act). You will receive a response within the
statutory timescale of 20 working days as defined by the Act, subject to
the information not being exempt or containing a reference to a third
party. In some circumstances the MPS may be unable to achieve this
deadline. If this is likely you will be informed and given a revised
time-scale at the earliest opportunity.

Some requests may also require either full or partial transference to
another public authority in order to answer your query in the fullest
possible way. Again, you will be informed if this is the case.

COMPLAINT RIGHTS

Your attention is drawn to the attached sheet, which details your right of
complaint.

Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write
or contact KSimmons via the e-mail address quoting the reference number
above.

Yours sincerely

KSimmons
Policy and Support Officer
COMPLAINT RIGHTS

Are you unhappy with how your request has been handled or do you think the
decision is incorrect?

You have the right to require the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to
review their decision.

Prior to lodging a formal complaint you are welcome and encouraged to
discuss the decision with the case officer that dealt with your request.

Ask to have the decision looked at again –

The quickest and easiest way to have the decision looked at again is to
telephone the case officer that is nominated at the end of your decision
letter.

That person will be able to discuss the decision, explain any issues and
assist with any problems.

Complaint

If you are dissatisfied with the handling procedures or the decision of
the MPS made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) regarding
access to information you can lodge a complaint with the MPS to have the
decision reviewed.

Complaints should be made in writing and addressed to:

FOI Complaint
Public Access Office
PO Box 57192
London
SW6 1SF

In all possible circumstances the MPS will aim to respond to your
complaint within 40 working days.
The Information Commissioner

After lodging a complaint with the MPS if you are still dissatisfied with
the decision you may make application to the Information Commissioner for
a decision on whether the request for information has been dealt with in
accordance with the requirements of the Act.

For information on how to make application to the Information Commissioner
please visit their website at www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk.
Alternatively, phone or write to:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Phone: 01625 545 700

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Dear Mr. Aleck

Freedom of Information Request Reference No: 2009060007507

I write in connection with your letter requesting that the Metropolitan
Police Service (MPS) review its delayed response to your request for
information relating to:

* FOIA Complaint regarding the applicant's FOIA case number
2009050005795 (misuse of Terrorism Act 2000).

I have identified the issues raised in your letter as follows:
1. The Metropolitan Police Service's (MPS) response to your Freedom of
Information Act 2000 request is overdue.
2. The MPS has not updated you or indicated any additional time required
regarding your request.

The review will be conducted in accordance to the MPS' complaints
procedure. The MPS endeavour to respond to your complaint by Monday 24th
August 2009.

Should you have any further inquiries concerning this matter, please
contact PAO on telephone number 02071613564 or at the address at the top
of the letter quoting the reference number above.

Thank you for your interest in the MPS.

Yours sincerely

Rozmarie Loizou
Administrative Support Officer

COMPLAINT RIGHTS

Are you unhappy with how your request has been handled or do you think the
decision is incorrect?

You have the right to require the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to
review their decision.

Prior to lodging a formal complaint you are welcome and encouraged to
discuss the decision with the case officer that dealt with your request.

Ask to have the decision looked at again –

The quickest and easiest way to have the decision looked at again is to
telephone the case officer that is nominated at the end of your decision
letter.

That person will be able to discuss the decision, explain any issues and
assist with any problems.

Complaint

If you are dissatisfied with the handling procedures or the decision of
the MPS made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) regarding
access to information you can lodge a complaint with the MPS to have the
decision reviewed.

Complaints should be made in writing and addressed to:

FOI Complaint
Public Access Office
PO Box 57192
London
SW6 1SF

In all possible circumstances the MPS will aim to respond to your
complaint within 40 working days.
The Information Commissioner

After lodging a complaint with the MPS if you are still dissatisfied with
the decision you may make application to the Information Commissioner for
a decision on whether the request for information has been dealt with in
accordance with the requirements of the Act.

For information on how to make application to the Information Commissioner
please visit their website at www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk.
Alternatively, phone or write to:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Phone: 01625 545 700

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Dear Mr Aleck

I apologise for the delay in responding to your enquiry. Kevin Simmons has been away from the office unexpectedly for the last few weeks - I am his line manager and I have now taken over dealing with his emails in his absence.

I have looked into your request and can see that it is being dealt with by the Directorate of Professional Standards team. I can see that a draft response is being prepared - it would probably be best to contact the team directly as they will be able to provide you with a more detailed update. The names of the people dealing with the request are:
[email address] and a contact number is 0207 230 5206.
[email address]

My own contact details are below. If you have any problems contacting Simone or Damion please let me know.

Yours sincerely

Lou Lander

Higher Information Access Manager
Public Access Office
Directorate of Information
Metropolitan Police Service
20th Floor, Empress State Building
Tel: 0207 0915565
Internal: 785565
[mobile number]
Email: [email address]

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Dear Mr Aleck,
Freedom of Information Request Reference No: 2009050005795
I write in response to your request for information which was received by
the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) on 21 May 2009. I apologise for the
delay in responding to your request and any inconvenience caused. I note
that you seek access to the following information:

1. The number of complaints of misuse of the Terrorism Act 2000.

2. The number of disciplinary procedures brought against personnel for
misuse of powers afforded to them under the Terrorism Act 2000 (whether
they originated from a complaint or not) broken down by year and outcome
if known. Any additional information you have would be appreciated.

Following receipt of your request, searches were conducted within the
Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to locate information relevant to your
request. I can confirm that the information requested is held by the MPS.

DECISION

I have disclosed the located information to you in full.
Table One: Allegations made against police regarding stops and/or searches
under the Terrorism Act 2000.

Please note that the term "misuse" is difficult to quantify in terms of an
allegation about police conduct. Table one accordingly refers to all
allegations made regarding tops and/or searches under the Terrorism Act
2000 from 20 July 2000 to 22 June 2009. The figures include instances
where the complaint is not directly related to the stop and search
procedure itself but refers to allegations of impoliteness during the
interaction between the individual and the police officer.

No officer has been subject to formal disciplinary procedures in relation
to their use of the Terrorism Act 2000.

MPS officers are at the forefront of tackling crime in London and are, on
occasions, subject to allegations about their conduct. The MPS treats each
occasion where an allegation is made about a member of its staff seriously
and will, where any allegation is received, fully investigate that
incident to determine whether a breach of the code of conduct for police
officers has taken place. It is of note that no officer has been subject
to formal disciplinary procedures in relation to their use of the
Terrorism Act 2000.

Please note that any person that feels a police officer has acted
improperly, has the right to make a complaint to either the Directorate of
Professional Standards or the Independent Police Complaints Commission
(IPCC). All complaints are overseen by the IPCC and each complainant has
the right to appeal to the IPCC where they feel unhappy with the outcome
of a complaint investigation.

All MPS employees are expected to behave professionally, ethically and
with the utmost integrity at all times. Any instance where the conduct of
our staff brings the service into disrepute is treated extremely seriously
by the MPS.

COMPLAINT RIGHTS

Your attention is drawn to the attached sheet which details your right of
complaint.

Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write
or contact Damion Baird on telephone number 0207 230 5204 quoting the
reference number above.

Yours sincerely

Damion Baird
Information Manager
Directorate of Professional Standards

In complying with their statutory duty under sections 1 and 11 of the
Freedom of Information Act 2000 to release the enclosed information, the
Metropolitan Police Service will not breach the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988. However, the rights of the copyright owner of the
enclosed information will continue to be protected by law. Applications
for the copyright owner's written permission to reproduce any part of the
attached information should be addressed to MPS Directorate of Legal
Services, 1st Floor (Victoria Block), New Scotland Yard, Victoria, London,
SW1H 0BG.
COMPLAINT RIGHTS

Are you unhappy with how your request has been handled or do you think the
decision is incorrect?

You have the right to require the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to
review their decision.

Prior to lodging a formal complaint you are welcome and encouraged to
discuss the decision with the case officer that dealt with your request.

Ask to have the decision looked at again ***

The quickest and easiest way to have the decision looked at again is to
telephone the case officer that is nominated at the end of your decision
letter.

That person will be able to discuss the decision, explain any issues and
assist with any problems.

Complaint

If you are dissatisfied with the handling procedures or the decision of
the MPS made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) regarding
access to information you can lodge a complaint with the MPS to have the
decision reviewed.

Complaints should be made in writing and addressed to:

FOI Complaint
Public Access Office
PO Box 57192
London
SW6 1SF

In all possible circumstances the MPS will aim to respond to your
complaint within 40 working days.
The Information Commissioner

After lodging a complaint with the MPS if you are still dissatisfied with
the decision you may make application to the Information Commissioner for
a decision on whether the request for information has been dealt with in
accordance with the requirements of the Act.

For information on how to make application to the Information Commissioner
please visit their website at www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk.
Alternatively, phone or write to:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Phone: 01625 545 700

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Dear Mr Aleck

Here is an explanation of the categories as requested:

De-Recorded - where a matter has been mistakenly recorded as a complaint
and the authority has received permission to de-record it.

Dispensation - Where a force or a police authority considers that no
action should be taken about a complaint (this is before a local
resolution or an investigation has started) they must get IPCC agreement
for a dispensation. Grounds for dispensation are where:
More than 12 months have elapsed between the incident giving rise to the
complaint and the making of the complaint, and either that no good
reason for the delay has been shown or that injustice would be likely to
be caused by the delay.
The matter is already subject of a complaint.
It is not reasonably practical to ascertain name or address of a
complainant.
Complaint is vexatious, oppressive or otherwise an abuse of the
procedures for dealing with complaints.

Discontinuance - Where a force considers it is no longer practical to
continue with an investigation and is unable to conclude the
investigation they can apply to the IPCC for discontinuance on the
following grounds: -
Non co-operation by complainant.
The complaint/conduct matter turns out to be vexatious, oppressive or an
abuse of procedure
The complaint/conduct matter turns out to be repetitious.
The complainant agrees to local resolution

Local Resolution - This is where the complaint is dealt with locally and
with the agreement of the complainant. It can be by way of Desktop - ie
it is dealt with at the relevant police station or borough, or
Management - ie it is dealt with by DPS.

Withdrawn - the complainant decides to discontinue the complaint
procedure and completes and signs the relevant form to this effect or
this may occur if the complainant does not respond to repeated attempts
to contact him in connection with the complaint.

Not recorded - this may be where the incident/behaviour complained of
does not meet the criteria of a matter which must be recorded as a
complaint under the provisions of the Police Reform Act 2002

Ongoing - refers to complaints which are still in the process of being
concluded.

I hope this assists you and for your further information on all aspects
of the complaints procedure I would direct you to the IPCC website which
you may find useful. I attach the internet address below.

www.ipcc.gov.uk

Yours sincerely

Carol Conway
DPS -FOIA Team

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Dear Mr. Aleck,

Freedom of Information Request Reference No: 2009060007507

Further to our letter of 30 June 2009 , I am now able to provide a full
response to your complaint dated 27 June 2009 concerning:

* FOIA case number 2009050005795 (misuse of Terrorism Act 2000)..

DECISION

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has completed its review and has
decided that incorrect procedure was followed in reaching our original
decision.

REASON FOR DECISION

To conduct this review, we have consulted with the Directorate of
Professional Standards about your case, in order to expedite its
conclusion.
I am aware that the response was originally due on 19 June 2009, albeit
the final response was not sent until 10 July 2009. This is clearly
unacceptable and for that I apologise.
In terms of the processing of your request and the MPS failing to respond
within the statutory time frame, there was indeed a breach of the Act.
Section 10 of the Act states that "subject to subsections (2) and (3), a
public authority must comply with section 1(1) promptly and in any event
not later than the twentieth working day following the date of receipt".
Section 17(2)(b) of the Act continues to say that if "the public authority
has not yet reached a decision as to the application of subsection (1)(b)
or (2)(b) of section 2, the notice under subsection (1) must indicate that
no decision as to the application of that provision has yet been reached
and must contain an estimate of the date by which the authority expects
that such a decision will have been reached".
I appreciate that in this instance there was a failure to comply within
the statutory deadline, or to provide you with an estimated date for a
full response. Accordingly I would like to take this opportunity to
apologise for the delays you have experienced and hope to reassure you
that the MPS take compliance with the Act very seriously and are working
hard to promote good practice in regard to the processing of requests.
The MPS is continually striving to ensure statutory deadlines are met and
enquiries are responded to as soon as possible. We are working towards
this goal whilst ensuring the operational policing needs of London are not
affected.
To ensure good practice, we have contacted and advised the Department
concerned that applicants should be updated in good time if there is a
possibility their request deadline will not be met for any reason.
I can confirm that in this instance we have breached section 10 by failing
to respond within the first twenty days, and have breached section
17(2)(b) by not sending you a refusal notice within the 20 working days to
inform you we could not comply by the statutory deadline.
I apologise again for any inconvenience caused by our failure to process
your request correctly.
I hope this will not deter you from making further requests in the future.
As you have now received a final response to your request, the MPS will
take no further action on this case review.

COMPLAINT RIGHTS

If you are dissatisfied with this response please read the attached paper
entitled Complaint Rights which explains how to contact the Information
Commissioner with your complaint.

Should you have any further inquiries concerning this matter, please
contact me on [telephone number] or at the address at the top of this
letter, quoting the reference number above.

Yours sincerely

David Edwards
FOIA Quality and Assurance Advisor
COMPLAINT RIGHTS

Are you unhappy with how your request has been handled or do you think the
decision is incorrect?

You have the right to require the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to
review their decision.

Prior to lodging a formal complaint you are welcome and encouraged to
discuss the decision with the case officer that dealt with your request.

Ask to have the decision looked at again –

The quickest and easiest way to have the decision looked at again is to
telephone the case officer that is nominated at the end of your decision
letter.

That person will be able to discuss the decision, explain any issues and
assist with any problems.

Complaint

If you are dissatisfied with the handling procedures or the decision of
the MPS made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) regarding
access to information you can lodge a complaint with the MPS to have the
decision reviewed.

Complaints should be made in writing and addressed to:

FOI Complaint
Public Access Office
PO Box 57192
London
SW6 1SF

In all possible circumstances the MPS will aim to respond to your
complaint within 40 working days.
The Information Commissioner

After lodging a complaint with the MPS if you are still dissatisfied with
the decision you may make application to the Information Commissioner for
a decision on whether the request for information has been dealt with in
accordance with the requirements of the Act.

For information on how to make application to the Information Commissioner
please visit their website at www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk.
Alternatively, phone or write to:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Phone: 01625 545 700

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