homes

The request was refused by Harrogate Borough Council.

Dear Harrogate Borough Council,

Please can you provide me with the following information under the
Freedom Of Information Act 2000:-

(a) addresses of "empty and derelict” properties that are
within your area; and

(b) the names of the owners of those properties referred to in

(c) The period of time they have been unoccupied for

The above questions relates to both residential and commercial
properties

Yours faithfully,

Andrew Smith

Jayne Williams, Harrogate Borough Council

2 Attachments

Dear Mr Smith

 

In your email received on 9 February 2013,  you asked for the following
information contained in your email appended below.  Please see our
response contained in the attached documents.

 

We hope you are happy with our service. But if you are not satisfied with
the way your request has been handled, please contact

Freedom of Information Officer

Council Offices Crescent Gardens Harrogate HG1 2SG

Or email [1][Harrogate Borough Council request email]

 

The Council has an internal appeal system. If your complaint is about the
decision that has been made, you will usually be entitled to have your
case reviewed by an officer from a department which has not been involved
in the decision previously.

 

If, after their decision, you are still not happy, you may appeal to:

The Information Commissioner

Wycliffe House, Water Lane

Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF

Tel 01625 545745  Fax 01625 524510

E mail@ [2][email address]

Website: [3]www.informationcommissoner.gov.uk

 

Yours sincerely

 

Jayne Williams 

Department of Resources

Harrogate Borough Council

Crescent Gardens

Harrogate HG1 2SG

Tel: 01423 556037

Fax: 01423 556010

email: [4][email address]

[5]www.harrogate.gov.uk

 

 

 

 

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Dear Jayne Williams,

As stated in my original question I requested the length of time each property as been empty for. This information does not seem to have been provided. Please can you update further

Yours sincerely,

Andrew Smith

Jayne Williams, Harrogate Borough Council

Dear Mr Smith
Thank you for your email of 27th February 2013 requesting additional information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 ('FOIA') relating to the Council's Empty Property Register.

I can confirm that the information you request is held by the Council (This duty to confirm the info exists is not necessary if to do so would reveal the content of the information), however it is exempt from disclosure by s31 of the FOIA because the information requested would be prejudicial to law enforcement. Section 31(a)(1) states:

"(1) Information is exempt information if its disclosure under the Act would, or would be likely to prejudice -
(a) the prevention or detection of crime".

In determining whether this exemption is engaged we have taken into account the findings of London Borough of Bexley v Colin England (EA/2006/0060 and 0066) and the Decision Notice involving the London Borough of Tower Hamlets (FS5025991). In particular the First Tier Tribunal decision in London Borough of Bexley v Colin England (EA/2006/0060 and 0066) found that:

1. There is evidence that empty properties are associated with criminal activity from organised local gangs (paragraph 21 - identified occasion of organised "stripping" of empty properties).

2. There is evidence that while squatting is not a crime, it is associated with criminal activity (paragraphs 48 and 57) identified a number of instances).

3. The disclosure of the length of time that properties were empty would be of use to squatters and would on the balance of probabilities lead to significant harm in the form of criminal activity (paragraph 63).

We note that the exemption was also found to be engaged in the recent decision of the First Tier Tribunal involving Voyias and Camden where they found a direct link between squatting and crime (EA/2011/0007). It is therefore considered that the disclosure of this information would be likely to prejudice the prevention of crime as it is believed that if information on the length of time that properties had been empty were to be disclosed then these properties would become more vulnerable to squatting associated crime and other forms of criminal activity including but not limited to criminal damage, extraction of electricity and the stripping of empty properties and would increase the social and economic costs in these areas as a result.

We hope you are happy with our service. But if you are not satisfied with the way your request has been handled, please contact -

Freedom of Information Officer
Council Offices, Crescent Gardens, Harrogate, HG1 2SG

or email [Harrogate Borough Council request email]

The Council has an internal appeal system. If your complaint is about the decision which has been made you will usually be entitled to have your case reviewed by an officer from a department which has not been involved in the decision previously.

If, after their decision, you are still not happy, you may appeal to-

The Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF
Tel: 01625 545745
Fax: 01625 524510
e-mail: [email address]
website: www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk

Yours sincerely

Jayne Williams

Jayne Williams
Harrogate Borough Council
Council Offices
Crescent Gardens
Harrogate HG1 2SG
Telephone: 01423 556037
Fax: 01423 556010
[email address]

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Dear Jayne Williams,

I would like to request an internal review in relation to the above refusal for information.

It is clear from the case of London Borough of Bexley v Mr Colin P England that councils are able to omit the requested data if they so wish. If the council is to have a strong empty homes policy developers must be given the opportunity to invest in a area. Without such investment the spiral of decline in some areas will continue without fresh investment.

Please can you demonstrate how releasing a list of empty homes to developers will have a "significant negative impact on the prevention of crime in your area". .

It is my belief that there will no increase in crime rates but rather a decrease. Developers looking for empty property's to bring back to the market will only have a positive effect on local crime rates. (as supported by various studies)

Your reasoning behind the refusal is the decision in the case of London Borough of Bexley v Mr Colin P England and the Information Commissioner, in which it was determined that releasing information of this type would be likely to have a significant negative impact on the prevention of crime.

The above case was successful as the Borough of Bexley as a particular problem with squatters. This is not the case on your area. Empty homes tend to be well known already within a local communities there is no evidence that supports the claim that releasing empty addresses of empty homes increases crime rates.

Yours sincerely,

Andrew Smith

Jayne Williams, Harrogate Borough Council

Dear Mr Smith

Thank for your email, from which I note that you would like an internal review of the refusal to disclose information. I would confirm that I have today forwarded your email onto the appropriate person within the Council for this to be carried out.

Yours sincerely

Jayne Williams

Jayne Williams
Harrogate Borough Council
Council Offices
Crescent Gardens
Harrogate HG1 2SG
Telephone: 01423 556037
Fax: 01423 556010
[email address]

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Simon Johnson, Harrogate Borough Council

Dear Mr Smith

 

Freedom Of Information Request – Homes

 

I refer to your email of 5 March 2013 requesting a review of the Council’s
decision to rely on the exemption in section 31(1)(a) of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000. The Council has sought to rely on this exemption
when it declined to disclose the period of time for which properties on
the list of empty properties provided to you have been unoccupied for. 

 

The Council in its email of 1 March 2013 stated that, “the disclosure of
the length of time that properties were empty would be of use to squatters
and would on the balance of probabilities lead to significant harm in the
form of criminal activity.”  The email referred to the case of the London
Borough of Bexley v Colin England in support of this decision.

 

Having conducted a review of the Council’s decision to invoke section
31(1)(a) I consider that the Council, having released the list of empty
property has no compelling reason not to disclose the duration for which
those properties have been unoccupied for.  Accordingly I will ask that
this information is provided to you.

 

This response follows an internal appeal by the Council in accordance with
the regulations. If you are still unhappy about the Council’s decision not
to release the information you may appeal to:-

 

The Information Commissioner

Wycliffe House, Water Lane

Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF

Tel no: 01625 545745  Fax: 01625 524510

e-mail: [1][email address]

website: [2]www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk

 

 

Yours sincerely

 

 

Simon Johnson

Head of Environment

Harrogate Borough Council

Department of Community Service

Springfield House

Kings Road

Harrogate

HG1 5NX

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Louise Porter, Harrogate Borough Council

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Smith,

Please find enclosed the revised list of empty properties with the
additional column to show the duration for which those properties have
been unoccupied for.

Kind regards

Louise Porter

 

LouisePorter

 

Louise Porter

Empty Property Officer.

Department of Community Services,

Springfield House,

Kings Road,

Harrogate,

HG1 5NX.

Telphone number 01423 551656

Fax 01423 556810

[1][email address]

Web www.harrogate.gov.uk

 

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