Meta Request FOI2021/18643 & FOI2021/00460
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
Please provide me with copies of any internal or external correspondence, papers or telephone records about the processing of my Freedom of Information requests FOI2021/18643 and FOI2021/00460 and the internal review that followed IR2021/18642.
This request, referred to by the ICO as a 'meta request' is not the same as a request for internal review. An authority should not refuse a meta request because it has already carried out an internal review. For further information see the ICO's document: "Requests for information about requests (Meta_requests) 20140612".
For any exempted data contained within any responsive information held, please redact specifically rather than exempting any whole documents.
Please do not treat this as a complaint.
Yours faithfully,
Edward Blaise
Thank you for contacting the FCDO Information Rights Unit (IRU).
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING ADVICE
Once we have officially accepted your request, we are unable to provide
progress updates within the initial 20 working day deadline for response.
Please do not send multiple emails about the same enquiry, as this is
likely to cause a delay in our response time.
Should you need assistance in making or refining your request you may wish
to consult the gov.uk guide on [1]How to make a Freedom of Information
(FOI) request
The Information rights Unit are not able to respond to queries on the
issues mentioned below. Emails about these issues will be deleted without
response. Please note the relevant guidance and redirect your query
accordingly.
Afghanistan related enquiries
The UK evacuation operation has now ceased. The security situation in
Afghanistan remains extremely volatile. There is an ongoing and high
threat of terrorist attack. The potential for terrorist attacks,
particularly around Kabul airport, remains very high. British nationals
remaining in Afghanistan need to consider carefully the risks should they
attempt to leave by any route. We advise against all travel to
Afghanistan. We continue to closely monitor events in Afghanistan. Please
check our travel advice for our latest advice for British nationals, and
subscribe for updates.
The British Embassy in Kabul has suspended in-country operations. All UK
diplomatic and consular staff have been temporarily withdrawn. The ability
to provide consular support to British nationals is extremely limited and
is being provided virtually. If you are a British national in Afghanistan
and need to speak to a consular officer call the FCDO on +441908 516666
(or 01908 516666 in the UK). The FCDO cannot offer advice on the safety of
travelling to any alternative departure point.
British nationals who remain in Afghanistan are strongly encouraged to
[2]register their presence in order to receive important updates. This
will enable us to validate the numbers of British nationals seeking
assistance, and to provide essential information to British nationals that
remain in Afghanistan, when it becomes available.
If you are an Afghan national and are eligible or have been approved for
assistance under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP),there
is more information here:
[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
If you are a non-British national in Afghanistan, or are the family member
of a non-British national in Afghanistan, and in need of assistance,
please see
[4]https://www.gov.uk/guidance/support-for-...
or call +44 2475 389 980 (or 02475 389 980 in the UK).
Current and former locally employed UK government staff, ie those who were
employed directly by the UK government, not through a third party, should
apply to ARAP following this link:
[5]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio....
Further information on the ARAP scheme can be found here:
[6]https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2021...
If you have already applied for ARAP, and would like an update on your
application, please re-send your query here:
[7][email address]
Non-Afghanistan related Consular Assistance for British Nationals
If you are a British national seeking urgent consular assistance, please
call the Consular Assistance Team on 020 7008 5000 (or +44 20 7008
5000).
ATAS Certificates
Email [8][email address] if you have a query about your application. We
are unable to reply to any query on an application.
Legalisation
Contact the Legalisation Office if you need an update on an application or
if you have a general enquiry: [9][email address], Telephone:
03700 00 22 44
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, [10]Find out about call charges
Visas
Please see guidance on [11]Applying for a visa to come to the UK or
contact [12]UK Visas and immigration for help.
Travel Advice
If you require travel advice for your destination country, please visit
the [13]Travel Advice pages, which contain the latest information on
coronavirus, safety and security, entry requirements and areas where the
FCDO advises against travel. You can also subscribe to travel advice
email alerts for your destination and monitor the FCDO coronavirus travel
advice page. You can follow FCDO Travel social media channels
on [14]Twitter, [15]Facebook and [16]Instagram. If you have a question
about the advice or a topic that is not covered, [17]please submit an
enquiry.
Follow us online: www.gov.uk/fcdo
This email is intended for the addressee(s) only: All messages sent and
received by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office may be
monitored in line with relevant [18]UK legislation
References
Visible links
1. https://www.gov.uk/make-a-freedom-of-inf...
2. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
3. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
4. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
5. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
6. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
7. mailto:[email address]
8. mailto:[email address]
9. mailto:[email address]
10. https://www.gov.uk/call-charges
11. https://www.gov.uk/apply-to-come-to-the-uk
12. https://www.gov.uk/contact-ukvi-inside-o...
13. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
14. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
15. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
16. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
17. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
18. https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
Dear Mr Blaise
Thank you for your FOI request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
We received your request on 6th December. It has been assigned a unique
reference number (above). We aim to respond by Thursday, 6th January.
Please note, however, that reprioritisation of resources due to the
COVID-19 crisis, and measures we are required to take to prevent the
spread of the virus, continue to have an impact on our ability to respond
to all requests within the statutory deadline.
We have significantly reduced on-site working which will mean delays to
responses which require access to paper records.
We are endeavouring to process requests as quickly as possible, and
appreciate your patience at this time.
Yours sincerely,
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
Please find attached an interim response to your request, FOI2021/32693,
with a new date that has been changed to 3rd February.
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
Please find attached an interim response to your request, FOI2021/32693,
with a new date that has been changed to 3rd March.
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
Please find attached an interim response to your request, FOI2021/32693,
with a new date that has been changed to 31st March.
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
The date that the response is due for your request, FOI2021/32693, has
been changed to 3rd May
Kind Regards
Elizabeth Changai
Dear Mr Blaise
The date that the response is due for your request, FOI2021/32693, has
been changed to 31st May
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
FCDO
Dear Mr Blaise
The date that the response is due for your request, FOI2021/32693, has
been changed to 30th June
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
The date that the response is due for your request, FOI2021/32693, has
been changed to 28th July
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
The date that the response is due for your request, FOI2021/32693, has
been changed to 25th August
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise
The date that the response is due for your request, FOI2021/32693, has
been changed to 23rd September
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
This is to make you aware I will be contacting the Information Commissioner regarding the length of delay to conduct the Public Interest Test.
As explained in the ICO’s guidance on time limits: “ 62. The Act does not define what might constitute a ‘reasonable’ extension of time. However, our view is that an authority should normally take no more than an additional 20 working days to consider the public interest, meaning that the total time spent dealing with the request should not exceed 40 working days. An extension beyond this should be exceptional. Examples of such circumstances could include extreme pressures placed on the public authority by a major incident or exceptional levels of complexity involving a number of external parties. Public authorities will need to demonstrate that the length of any time extension is justified.”
I know of no major incident or exceptional complexity to my question.
As a result I am also requesting for the FCO to demonstrate justification for the length of the time extension, as required by the ICO.
Yours faithfully,
Edward Blaise
Thank you for contacting the FCDO Information Rights Unit (IRU).
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING ADVICE
Once we have officially accepted your request, we are unable to provide
progress updates within the initial 20 working day deadline for response.
Please do not send multiple emails about the same enquiry, as this is
likely to cause a delay in our response time.
Should you need assistance in making or refining your request you may wish
to consult the gov.uk guide on [1]How to make a Freedom of Information
(FOI) request
The Information rights Unit are not able to respond to queries on the
issues mentioned below. Emails about these issues will be deleted without
response. Please note the relevant guidance and redirect your query
accordingly.
Afghanistan related enquiries
The UK evacuation operation has now ceased. The security situation in
Afghanistan remains extremely volatile. There is an ongoing and high
threat of terrorist attack. The potential for terrorist attacks,
particularly around Kabul airport, remains very high. British nationals
remaining in Afghanistan need to consider carefully the risks should they
attempt to leave by any route. We advise against all travel to
Afghanistan. We continue to closely monitor events in Afghanistan. Please
check our travel advice for our latest advice for British nationals, and
subscribe for updates.
The British Embassy in Kabul has suspended in-country operations. All UK
diplomatic and consular staff have been temporarily withdrawn. The ability
to provide consular support to British nationals is extremely limited and
is being provided virtually. If you are a British national in Afghanistan
and need to speak to a consular officer call the FCDO on +441908 516666
(or 01908 516666 in the UK). The FCDO cannot offer advice on the safety of
travelling to any alternative departure point.
British nationals who remain in Afghanistan are strongly encouraged to
[2]register their presence in order to receive important updates. This
will enable us to validate the numbers of British nationals seeking
assistance, and to provide essential information to British nationals that
remain in Afghanistan, when it becomes available.
If you are an Afghan national and are eligible or have been approved for
assistance under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP),there
is more information here:
[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
If you are a non-British national in Afghanistan, or are the family member
of a non-British national in Afghanistan, and in need of assistance,
please see
[4]https://www.gov.uk/guidance/support-for-...
or call +44 2475 389 980 (or 02475 389 980 in the UK).
Current and former locally employed UK government staff, ie those who were
employed directly by the UK government, not through a third party, should
apply to ARAP following this link:
[5]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio....
Further information on the ARAP scheme can be found here:
[6]https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2021...
If you have already applied for ARAP, and would like an update on your
application, please re-send your query here:
[7][email address]
Non-Afghanistan related Consular Assistance for British Nationals
If you are a British national seeking urgent consular assistance, please
call the Consular Assistance Team on 020 7008 5000 (or +44 20 7008
5000).
ATAS Certificates
Email [8][email address] if you have a query about your application. We
are unable to reply to any query on an application.
Legalisation
Contact the Legalisation Office if you need an update on an application or
if you have a general enquiry: [9][email address], Telephone:
03700 00 22 44
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, [10]Find out about call charges
Visas
Please see guidance on [11]Applying for a visa to come to the UK or
contact [12]UK Visas and immigration for help.
Travel Advice
If you require travel advice for your destination country, please visit
the [13]Travel Advice pages, which contain the latest information on
coronavirus, safety and security, entry requirements and areas where the
FCDO advises against travel. You can also subscribe to travel advice
email alerts for your destination and monitor the FCDO coronavirus travel
advice page. You can follow FCDO Travel social media channels
on [14]Twitter, [15]Facebook and [16]Instagram. If you have a question
about the advice or a topic that is not covered, [17]please submit an
enquiry.
Follow us online: www.gov.uk/fcdo
This email is intended for the addressee(s) only: All messages sent and
received by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office may be
monitored in line with relevant [18]UK legislation
References
Visible links
1. https://www.gov.uk/make-a-freedom-of-inf...
2. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
3. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
4. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
5. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
6. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
7. mailto:[email address]
8. mailto:[email address]
9. mailto:[email address]
10. https://www.gov.uk/call-charges
11. https://www.gov.uk/apply-to-come-to-the-uk
12. https://www.gov.uk/contact-ukvi-inside-o...
13. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
14. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
15. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
16. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
17. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
18. https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
Dear Mr Blaise
Please see attached letter regarding FOI2021/32693.
Kind Regards
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Edward Blaise left an annotation ()
The Information Commissioner has today issued a Decision Notice informing the FCDO they have breached the Act and must reply to my request within 35 calendar days.
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
I am once again following up on this request. You failed to reply within the 10 working days initially required by the Information Commissioner, which given this request was made in December 2021 is remarkable.
As I am sure you are aware, a Decision Notice was issued by the Information Commissioner requiring you to respond within the notice's specified period.
Yours faithfully,
Edward Blaise
Dear Mr Blaise
We apologise for the delay in responding to your FOI request. We are dealing with your request as a priority and will respond shortly.
Yours Sincerely,
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Common & Development Office
Dear Mr Blaise,
I am writing in response to your Freedom of Information request
FOI2021/32693, received 6th December. Please find our response attached.
Yours sincerely,
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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WhatDoTheyKnow left an annotation ()
The request this request relates to appears to be:
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/l...