Defence Equipment and Support
Secretariat
#2043 Maple 0a
Ministry of Defence
Abbey Wood
Bristol BS34 8JH
Email: DES SEC-PolSec xxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xx
Mr C Hollands
Our Reference:
email: request-725491-
F
OI2021/01476
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
Date:
11 February 2021
Dear Mr Hollands,
I am writing about your email of 8 February 2021, requesting the following information:
‘I would like to know if you can provide the JAMES information for a vehicle reg
number LM43AA.
I have the merlin report but I believe the JAMES system gives more in depth details on
work carried out and maintenance of the vehicle.
If this information is unavailable or classified could you explain why such information
should not be available to the public?’
Your request has been handled in accordance with the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000.
A search has been carried out of Ministry of Defence (MOD) records and it is confirmed that some
information is held on your vehicle that can be released. This is enclosed, as follows:
Annex A - LM43AA Fault History (redacted)
Annex B - LM43AA Inspection History
Annex C - LM43AA Modifications History
Annex D - LM43AA Service History
It has proved necessary to withhold some information related to your request. This is commercially
sensitive information in the Fault History (Annex B) relating to contractor repair times, which has
been withheld under qualified exemption Section 43(2) (Commercial Interests). Section 43 concerns
information which if disclosed would or would likely prejudice the commercial interests of any person
(including defence contractors and the public authority holding it).
As this exemption is qualified, it was necessary to undertake a Public Interest Test to determine
whether the balance for withholding the information outweighs that for disclosure. General
arguments in favour of release were that full disclosure would demonstrate the MOD’s commitment
to openness and transparency; and make the UK Government more accountable to the electorate.
The FOI Act also contains a presumption for release.
The Fault History (Annex B) provides details of the time taken by MOD contractors to rectify fault
reports on MB70AA. This data, along with previously published information, could be used to make
reasonable assumptions about hourly labour rates. As market sensitive information, this could then
be exploited by commercial competitors to undercut the contractor when bidding for similar work.
Given the arguments described above, on balance, it was determined that the information should be
withheld. The level of prejudice against release of this exempted information has been set at the
higher level of “would” rather than “would be likely to”.
If you have any queries regarding the content of this letter, please contact this office in the first
instance. If you wish to complain about the handling of your request, or the content of this response,
you can request an independent internal review by contacting the Information Rights Compliance
team, Ground Floor, MOD Main Building, Whitehall, SW1A 2HB (e-mail xxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx).
Please note that any request for an internal review should be made within 40 working days of the
date of this response.
If you remain dissatisfied following an internal review, you may raise your complaint directly to the
Information Commissioner under the provisions of Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act.
Please note that the Information Commissioner will not normally investigate your case until the MOD
internal review process has been completed. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
Further details of the role and powers of the Information Commissioner can be found on the
Commissioner's website at https://ico.org.uk/.
Yours sincerely,
DE&S Secretariat