Property and Assets and Buildings

The request was refused by South Cambridgeshire District Council.

Dear Organisation,

I would like to know a full list of Vacant Properties held by your organisation and any of its subsidiaries.

If possible their market value for sale or to let, whether they would be considered for a community asset transfer, if not then whether they are for sale or to let. In a clear and easy to read format. It would be supportive if the property is for sale or to let that it is listed on here too: https://e-pims.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/gove... and that you inform us of this intention or such listing in the request.

In the previous case in Voyias v IC and LB Camden (EA/201v1/0007), the requesters asked for substantially similar information, and the judge favoured disclosure. I appreciate the circumstances here are quite different, but the same principles should apply.

I understand there is a risk that your empty properties would be targeted by squatters should this the list of empty properties be public, but this is a very slim risk. The prejudice to law enforcement should be real, likely and substantial, as per Hogan v the ICO and Oxford City Council. I can assure you that my request is not sent in order to cause trouble for the authority, it is predominantly for my own research, with publication as part of campaigning materials. I am concerned at the sale of public assets, not a not an advocate for their illegal occupation. I would also say that I cannot imagine the disclosure of this list of properties to significantly affect a squatting problem that pre-existed my interest in the organisation. Overall the prejudice to law enforcement is very slim, and not severe. Since 12 months will be the time that this information will be released onto this site, unless others request this information separately. The requester is not liable for any issues that may arise in between or after.

It is in the public interest and transparency that this information is made publicly available under the public sector duty under the equality act allowing people to know of this information and make use of it under the Community Asset Transfer scheme and under the Human Rights Act Article 11 enabling the community to gather and make decisions on the allocation of such assets.

Yours faithfully,

Viran Patel

South Cambridgeshire District Council

1 Attachment

 

Dear Viran Patel,

RFI: 3482   Dear Organisation, I would like to know a full li...

Thank you for your request for information. Your request below will be
forwarded to the appropriate department to answer.

Dear Organisation,

I would like to know a full list of Vacant Properties held by your
organisation and any of its subsidiaries.

If possible their market value for sale or to let, whether they would be
considered for a community asset transfer, if not then whether they are for
sale or to let. In a clear and easy to read format. It would be supportive
if the property is for sale or to let that it is listed on here too:
[1]https://e-pims.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/gove...
and that you inform us of this intention or such listing in the request.

In the previous case in Voyias v IC and LB Camden (EA/201v1/0007), the
requesters asked for substantially similar information, and the judge
favoured disclosure. I appreciate the circumstances here are quite
different, but the same principles should apply.

I understand there is a risk that your empty properties would be targeted
by squatters should this the list of empty properties be public, but this
is a very slim risk. The prejudice to law enforcement should be real,
likely and substantial, as per Hogan v the ICO and Oxford City Council. I
can assure you that my request is not sent in order to cause trouble for
the authority, it is predominantly for my own research, with publication as
part of campaigning materials. I am concerned at the sale of public assets,
not a not an advocate for their illegal occupation. I would also say that I
cannot imagine the disclosure of this list of properties to significantly
affect a squatting problem that pre-existed my interest in the
organisation. Overall the prejudice to law enforcement is very slim, and
not severe. Since 12 months will be the time that this information will be
released onto this site, unless others request this information separately.
The requester is not liable for any issues that may arise in between or
after.

It is in the public interest and transparency that this information is made
publicly available under the public sector duty under the equality act
allowing people to know of this information and make use of it under the
Community Asset Transfer scheme and under the Human Rights Act Article 11
enabling the community to gather and make decisions on the allocation of
such assets.

Yours faithfully,

Viran Patel

 

We aim to respond to your request as soon as possible and within 20 working
days. In the meantime if you have any questions please contact us.

Yours sincerely

Information Management Team

3C Shared Services

Telephone: 01954 713318 & 01480 388850
Email:
For South Cambridgeshire DC - [email address]
For Cambridge City Council -[email address]
For Huntingdonshire DC - [email address]

 

3C Shared Services is a strategic partnership between Cambridge City
Council, Huntingdonshire District Council and South Cambridgeshire
District Council

Appeals Process

The Council is committed to transparency and openness, and it is our
intention to comply fully with the laws that govern access to information.
If you have any cause to believe that the terms of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 are not being met by us, please let us know in the
first instance. If you are still dissatisfied you can address your
complaint to the Information Governance Manager, who will undertake an
Internal Review of your case. Further to this you have the subsequent
option to contact the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Copyright

Provision of this information does not automatically infer the right to
copy publish or alter the information. In most cases the Council will own
the copyright of the information provided here, or the information will be
provided under the Open Government Licence (OGL), but the rights to some
information may belong to a third party and if so a re- use licence may be
required. Please contact us for advice.

References

Visible links
1. http://track.vuelio.uk.com/z.z?l=aHR0cHM...

South Cambridgeshire District Council

1 Attachment

Dear Viran Patel,

Re: Request for Information (RFI: 3482) Vacant Properties

I would like to know a full list of Vacant Properties held by your
organisation and any of its subsidiaries.

Thank you for your request for information above, which we have dealt with
under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

I hope the following will answer your query:

Under section 31(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act, an exemption
applies where disclosure would be likely to prejudice the prevention or
detection of crime. Disclosure of information of empty residential
properties could provide an opportunity for criminal acts to be committed,
either through crimes against property, anti-social behaviour or identity
fraud.

In line with the terms of this exemption in the Freedom of Information
Act, we have also considered whether it would be in the public interest
for us to provide you with the information, despite the exemption being
applicable.

Public interest considerations favouring disclosure

* There is an inherent interest within the Freedom of Information Act
that public disclosure promotes better government through transparency
and accountability.

* This information may add to local discourse surrounding housing
shortages or help bring properties back into use.

Public interest considerations favouring withholding the information

* Empty properties are vulnerable to illegal occupation or other forms
of anti-social behaviour which will affect not just the owners but
also any nearby residents and communities.

* In addition, the risk of criminal damage also brings with it increased
costs of security measures, repairs, increased insurance premiums and
local property values.

* Cambridge is an area of high levels of identity fraud (CIFAS UK fraud
trends report 2014), publishing of excessive identifying information
could facilitate identity theft.

In this case we have concluded that the public interest favours
withholding the information. Although there is public interest in this
matter, the council already acts to bring empty properties back into use
and disclosure of this information may pose a risk to property, the
property owners and also any neighbouring communities.

There is a real risk that this information could be used for fraudulent
activity and the disclosure of this ready collated information increases
that risk of prejudice to the prevention of crime, in the form of criminal
damage to property and squatting, arson and anti-social behaviour.

There is also a strong public interest in avoiding personal distress to
the victims of crime and in relation to damage to properties those in the
neighbourhood may be negatively affected.

The risk of prejudice to the prevention and protection of crime ranging
from anti -social behaviour to identity fraud at significant public
expense means the public interest in avoiding prejudice and maintaining
the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

You will notice in the tribunal you referred to (EA/2011/0007) that the
final decision decided that the public interest in maintaining the
exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

We aim to provide a high quality service to you and hope that you are
satisfied with this response. If you have any further questions please do
not hesitate to contact us.

Yours sincerely

Information Management Team

3C Shared Services

Telephone: 01954 713318 & 01480 388850

Email:

For South Cambridgeshire DC - [email address]

For Cambridge City Council -[email address]

For Huntingdonshire DC - [email address]

3C Shared Services is a strategic partnership between Cambridge City
Council, Huntingdonshire District Council and South Cambridgeshire
District Council

Appeals Process

The Council is committed to transparency and openness, and it is our
intention to comply fully with the laws that govern access to information.
If you have any cause to believe that the terms of the FOI Act or EIR
Regulations are not being met by us, please let us know in the first
instance. If you are still dissatisfied you can address your complaint to
the Information Governance Manager who will undertake an Internal Review
of your case. Internal review requests should be submitted within two
months of the date of receipt of the response to your original request.
Further to this you have the subsequent option to contact the Information
Commissioner's Office.

Copyright

Provision of this information does not automatically infer the right to
copy publish or alter the information. In most cases the Council will own
the copyright of the information provided here, or the information will be
provided under the Open Government Licence (OGL), but the rights to some
information may belong to a third party and if so a re- use licence may be
required. Please contact us for advice.