Empty homes

The request was partially successful.

Catherine Musgrove

Dear Wyre Borough Council,

Under the Freedom of Information Act, please can you provide me with a list of long-term empty houses (six months or more) within your council area, with addresses.

Please can you also provide me with the number of long term empty houses (no need for addresses) that the council knew of this time in 2013 and 2012.

Yours faithfully,

Catherine Musgrove

Wyre Borough Council

Thank you for your email.

Wyre Council acknowledges your request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. We will reply as soon as possible and no later than 20 working days.

If there is any reason why we are unable to provide the information or if there will be a cost involved you will be advised accordingly. Please quote our reference 101003384614 in any communication regarding this particular request.

Regards
Leo
Wyre Council

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Freedom Of Information, Wyre Borough Council

Dear Ms Musgrove,

 

Re: Freedom of Information Request dated 13/10/2014

 

Thank you for your email where you requested information about empty
properties.             

 

This response constitutes a refusal notice in accordance with section
17(5) of the Freedom of Information Act.

 

I can confirm that Wyre Council holds the information you have requested.
However we are not releasing some of  this information to you since we
consider the following exemption applies to it.

 

S31(1)(a) (Law Enforcement) applies to this information  as a result of
the case EA/2011/007 dated 22nd January 2013 where the First Tier Tribunal
decided that the addresses of empty residential and commercial properties
were exempt from disclosure pursuant to this section of the Freedom of
Information Act.  This is a qualified exemption therefore we have had to
balance the public interest in withholding the information against the
interest in favour of disclosure. 

 

The full decision can be found at:
[1]http://www.informationtribunal.gov.uk/DB...

 

Factors in favour of disclosure

 

Whilst the Local Authority have a duty to provide information under the
Act and there is a public interest in disclosing details of vacant
properties to try and bring these properties back into use, we feel
identification of these properties could prejudice the prevention or
detection of crime.

 

Factors in favour of non-disclosure

 

The Council also have an obligation ensuring information given out does
not lead to an increase in crime which has an indirect/direct impact on
others.  Therefore we have considered the following:

 

•             An increase in crimes such as fly tipping, squatting,
criminal damage. 

•             The cost of securing properties to prevent property
stripping, squatting, criminal damage. 

•             The impact on local police resources and our own resources,
including additional cost to the public purse.

•             The impact on those directly affected and on a local
community in the vicinity of a “problem” property due to any the factors
mentioned.

 

In considering the two factors the Council have decided the relatively
small weight in the public interest in disclosure in our view does not
come close to equalling the public interest in preventing the categories
of crime we have identified.  Therefore the public interest in maintaining
the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure and the Council
are therefore entitled to refuse the information you have requested under
S31(1)(a)

 

However, I can confirm that in October 2012 there were 619 empty
properties and 557 in October 2013.

 

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by copyright. 
You are free to use it for your own purposes, including for private study
and non-commercial research and for any other purpose authorised by an
exceptions in current copyright law.  Documents (except photographs) can
be also used in the UK without requiring permission for the purposes of
news reporting.  Any other reuse, for example commercial publications,
would require the permission of the copyright holder.

 

If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request, you have the
right to ask for an internal review.  Internal review requests should be
submitted within two months of the date of receipt of the response to your
original letter and should be addressed to: Mary Grimshaw, Senior
Solicitor, Wyre Council, Civic Centre, Breck Road, Poulton le Fylde,
Lancashire, FY6 7PU.

 

Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future
communications.

 

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.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Catherine Greener

 

The Wyre Council email disclaimer can be found at
[2]www.wyre.gov.uk/disclaimer.

References

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1. http://www.informationtribunal.gov.uk/DB...
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