Informers at the University of Cambridge

[Name Removed] made this Freedom of Information request to University of Cambridge This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

The request was partially successful.

Dear University of Cambridge,

under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (hereafter 'the Act'), I am requesting that you provide me with the following documents, for the period 01/09/2012-17/11/2013:

1) any and all correspondence with the Cambridgeshire constabulary (aka 'Cambridgeshire police') or any of its officers, in which the political activities of the university's undergraduate or postgraduate students is substantially discussed. By 'political activities' I include especially: the planning or execution of protests or direct action; the co-ordination of campaigns against government policy. However, I do not exclude anything else which might normally be assumed to fall under the rubric 'political activities'.

2) any and all correspondence with the the Cambridgeshire constabulary (aka 'Cambridgeshire police') or any of its officers, in which the activities of the University and College Union is substantially discussed. By 'activities' I include in particular: the planning or execution of strikes.

3) any and all correspondence with the Cambridgeshire constabulary (aka 'Cambridgeshire police') or any of its officers, in which the possibility of recruiting informers from the University's undergraduate or postgraduate cohorts is discussed at all.

I use the phrase 'substantially discussed' in (1) and (2) because I realize that the request might become too expensive if the contents of all such correspondence is sifted. If you do not consider this too expensive under the terms of the Act, for example if there is only limited total correspondence with the Cambridgeshire police, then this process should be undertaken. However, if you do consider it too expensive, for example if correspondence with the Cambridgeshire police was very regular during this time period, then simply supply all correspondence in which the relevant activities are the chief subject(s) under discussion.

Should the total work involved in responding to this request be deemed too expensive under the terms of the Act, eliminate elements of the request in this order - (2); (1). If you eliminate both and still consider (3) to be too expensive, please supply detailed justification of this reasoning by a qualified person as defined under the terms of the Act.

If any of the information requested is protected by the Data Protection Act 1998, or by other relevant laws or regulations, including those exclusions specified by the Act, please supply the documents with appropriate redactions. If this should still be insufficient to meet your obligations under the DPA and other legal regulations, please supply the date/time of each item of correspondence that would ordinarily have been supplied were such restrictions not in place.

Please send all replies in electronic form to this address. If you feel any part of my request is unclear, please seek clarification from me before rejecting the request outright.

Yours faithfully,
Dr [Name Removed]

FOI, University of Cambridge

Dear Dr Oppitz-Trotman ,

This is to acknowledge receipt of your request for information. Your reference number is FOI-2013-375. We will respond on or before 13 December 2013.

Regards,
FOI Team

Freedom of Information Office
University of Cambridge
Registrary's Office, The Old Schools
Trinity Lane, Cambridge, CB2 1TN
T: (01223 7)64142
F: (01223 3)32332
E: [University of Cambridge request email]

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FOI, University of Cambridge

1 Attachment

Dear Dr Oppitz-Trotman,

Further to your request for information, please find attached the University’s response.

Regards,
FOI Team

Freedom of Information Office
University of Cambridge
Registrary's Office, The Old Schools
Trinity Lane, Cambridge, CB2 1TN
T: (01223 7)64142
F: (01223 3)32332
E: [University of Cambridge request email]

show quoted sections