Gagging Orders

1. How many employees have been asked to sign 'compromise agreements' or 'confidentiality agreements' in order to encourage them to keep quiet about matters concerning the council? All compromise agreements contain wording to the effect that the terms of the agreement and events leading up to it shall be kept confidential but it’s accepted that that would not stop whistleblowing. We have no records of any employee of the Council being asked to sign a compromise agreement or confidentiality agreement in order to encourage them to keep quiet about matters concerning the Council.

2. In each of these cases, please tell me how much money was handed over, if any, in severance pay? n/a see above

3. In each case, please tell me who these employees were (i.e. what their job/role at the council was and WHY exactly they were paid of. I understand that some detail may not be available in order to protect their identities, but please give detail of the context of the agreement and their position) n/a see above

4. Have any of these employees received any further action for breaking these agreements and were any taken through secret court proceedings? n/a see above

5. How many members of the public (if any) were made to sign compromise agreements or confidentiality agreements, and as above, please give as much detail as to why they were made to sign them and if any money was involved.

This information is not recorded centrally. The time taken to investigate and interrogate individual files would be far in excess of the timescale guidelines set out under the FOIA and is therefore Exempt under S12.”