Legal advice - Letter from Andrew Davies, Chair of ABMU Health Board

The request was partially successful.

Dear Mr Tillman,

A BBC report from the 10th April 2019 concerns a letter from the Chair of the Swansea Bay ABMU Health Board (now Swansea Bay University Health board), Andrew Davies to the City Deal Board. The article includes the following statement from the council;

"We are considering the contents of the letter and will be issuing a robust response in due course. We will also take legal advice as we consider that the statements made are potentially defamatory"

Please provide;
a) Details and/or any written/email directions or correspondence confirming who authorised and approved this press release and on what basis it was alleged to be 'potentially defamatory'.
b) If legal advice was sought, please confirm whether this was internal or external advice.
If external, which legal firm provided the advice.
c) Please provide a copy of the advice received and confirm whether or not a letter before action has been issued.
d) If legal advice was not sought from anywhere, either prior or following the council's statement, please also confirm this.

Yours sincerely,

Jacqui Thompson

FOIA, Carmarthenshire County Council

Diolch am eich ebost. Mae hwn yn derbyn sylw a bydd ymateb pellach yn cael
ei ddarparu cyn gynted â phosibl.

Os ydych yn gwneud cais am wybodaeth, bydd y cyfnodau isod yn berthnasol:

Deddf Rhyddid Gwybodaeth 2000/Rheoliadau Gwybodaeth Amgylcheddol 2004 - 20
diwrnod gwaith, oni bai bod angen eglurhad arnom ynghylch y wybodaeth yr
ydych yn gofyn amdano.

Rheoliad Diogelu Data Cyffredinol (ceisiadau am fynediad i ddata personol)
– un mis ar ôl derbyn y cais.

Os bydd angen eglurhad arnom ar unrhyw agwedd o’ch cais, byddwn yn
cysylltu â chi mor gynted ag y bo modd.

Tîm Llywodraethu Gwybodaeth
Cyngor Sir Gaerfyrddin

 

Thank you for your email. This is receiving attention and a further
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If you are making a request for information, the following timescales will
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If we do need to clarify any aspect of your request, we will contact you
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Information Governance Team
Carmarthenshire County Council

 

Dear FOIA team,

The response to this request is late and I should have received it by the 8th July. I'd be grateful for the response or an explanation for the delay.

Thank you
Jacqui Thompson

FOIA, Carmarthenshire County Council

Diolch am eich ebost. Mae hwn yn derbyn sylw a bydd ymateb pellach yn cael
ei ddarparu cyn gynted â phosibl.

Os ydych yn gwneud cais am wybodaeth, bydd y cyfnodau isod yn berthnasol:

Deddf Rhyddid Gwybodaeth 2000/Rheoliadau Gwybodaeth Amgylcheddol 2004 - 20
diwrnod gwaith, oni bai bod angen eglurhad arnom ynghylch y wybodaeth yr
ydych yn gofyn amdano.

Rheoliad Diogelu Data Cyffredinol (ceisiadau am fynediad i ddata personol)
– un mis ar ôl derbyn y cais.

Os bydd angen eglurhad arnom ar unrhyw agwedd o’ch cais, byddwn yn
cysylltu â chi mor gynted ag y bo modd.

Tîm Llywodraethu Gwybodaeth
Cyngor Sir Gaerfyrddin

 

Thank you for your email. This is receiving attention and a further
response will be provided as soon as possible.

If you are making a request for information, the following timescales will
apply:

Freedom of Information Act 2000/Environmental Information Regulations 2004
- 20 working days, unless we need clarification regarding the information
you are seeking.

General Data Protection Regulation (requests for access to personal data)
– one month from the receipt of the request.

If we do need to clarify any aspect of your request, we will contact you
as soon as possible.

Information Governance Team
Carmarthenshire County Council

 

FOIA, Carmarthenshire County Council

1 Attachment

Dear Mrs Thompson,

I refer to your request for information, which was received on 10th June, 2019 and has been dealt with under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Please accept my apologies for the delay in providing this response.

The specific information you requested was as follows:

"a) Details and/or any written/email directions or correspondence confirming who authorised and approved this press release and on what basis it was alleged to be 'potentially defamatory'.

b) If legal advice was sought, please confirm whether this was internal or external advice.
If external, which legal firm provided the advice.

c) Please provide a copy of the advice received and confirm whether or not a letter before action has been issued.

d) If legal advice was not sought from anywhere, either prior or following the council's statement, please also confirm this."

In response to your request, the only relevant information we hold is attached, in full.

If you are unhappy with the way in which your request has been handled, you can request a review by writing to:

The Head of Administration & Law
Carmarthenshire County Council
County Hall
Carmarthen
SA31 1JP

Email: [email address]

If you remain unhappy with the handling of your request or complaint, you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:

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

Telephone: 0303 123 1113
Website: www.ico.gov.uk

Yours sincerely

John Tillman
Rheolwr Llywodraethu Gwybodaeth a Chwynion
Adfywio a Pholisi
Adran y Prif Weithredwr
Cyngor Sir Gaerfyrddin

Information Governance & Complaints Manager
Regeneration & Policy
Chief Executive’s Department
Carmarthenshire County Council

Mewnol/Internal: 4127
Allanol/External: 01267 224127

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