Mirror Shop
Dear Greenwich Borough Council,
In light of your recent press release - https://www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/news/a... - could you please:
1) Tell me how many complaints have been received about obstruction of the highway outside The Mirror Shop, 249 Woolwich Road SE10 0RN, since 1 January 2014.
2) Send me copies of those complaints (redacted to protect anything which identifies anybody, of course).
3) Send me the officers' reports from the recent investigation into and prosecution of The Mirror Shop.
4) Tell me which court the prosecution took place, and on what date the fine was handed down.
5) Tell how much the fine was and how much the costs were (of the total £872).
6) Tell me how much the investigation and prosecution cost in officer time and external legal costs.
Thank you in advance for your assistance.
Yours faithfully,
Darryl Chamberlain
Dear Mr Chamberlain
Freedom of Information request: FOI-36120
Thank you for your request dated 20 January 2020
Your request will be answered by 17 February 2020
If you have any queries about this request, please contact me, quoting the
reference number above.
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Jago
Head of Corporate Services
Corporate Services
Directorate of Communities & Environment
Royal Borough of Greenwich
' 020 8921 5044
* 3^rd Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18
6HQ
ü Please consider the environment before printing this email
Dear Mr Chamberlain
Freedom of Information request: FOI-36120
Apologies, your acknowledgement of this FOI should have read the
following;
Thank you for your request dated 17 January 2020
Your request will be answered by 14 February 2020
If you have any queries about this request, please contact me, quoting the
reference number above.
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Jago
Head of Corporate Services
Corporate Services
Directorate of Communities & Environment
Royal Borough of Greenwich
' 020 8921 5044
* 3^rd Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18
6HQ
ü Please consider the environment before printing this email
From: foi
Sent: 20 January 2020 09:42
To: 'Darryl Chamberlain' <[FOI #636054 email]>
Cc: foi <[Greenwich Borough Council request email]>
Subject: FOI-36120: Freedom of Information request - Mirror Shop
Dear Mr Chamberlain
Freedom of Information request: FOI-36120
Thank you for your request dated 20 January 2020
Your request will be answered by 17 February 2020
If you have any queries about this request, please contact me, quoting the
reference number above.
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Jago
Head of Corporate Services
Corporate Services
Directorate of Communities & Environment
Royal Borough of Greenwich
' 020 8921 5044
* 3^rd Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18
6HQ
ü Please consider the environment before printing this email
Dear Mr Chamberlain
Freedom of Information request: FOI-36120
Thank you for your request dated 17 January 2020
Our response is as follows:
In light of your recent press release
- [1]https://www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/news/a...
could you please:
1) Tell me how many complaints have been received about obstruction of the
highway outside The Mirror Shop, 249 Woolwich Road SE10 0RN, since 1
January 2014.
One complaint was raised via Fix My Street, and two complaints were raised
as Member casework
A further complaint was also received by Planning Enforcement, although it
did not relate to obstructions on the highway.
2) Send me copies of those complaints (redacted to protect anything which
identifies anybody, of course).
A case raised in relation to the Mirror Shop can be found on Fix My Street
via the following link:
[2]https://fix.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/report...
Two items of casework, which have been redacted in line with the exemption
below, have also been received in relation to the Mirror Shop, and are
enclosed.
Section 40(2) Exemption Engaged
Section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act (the Act) provides that
information is exempt from disclosure if it is the personal data of an
individual other than the requester and where one of the conditions listed
in section 40(3A)(3B)or 40(A) is satisfied.
In relation to your request for information, the relevant condition is
contained in section 40(3A). This applies where the disclosure of the
information to any member of the public would contravene any of the
principles relating to the processing of personal data (Data Protection
principles) as set out in Article 5 of the General Data Protection
Regulations (GDPR).
Is this information personal data?
Section 3(2) of the Data Protection Act 2018 defines personal data as:-
“Any information relating to an identified or identifiable living
individual”
The two main elements of personal data are that the information must
relate to a living person, and that the person must be identifiable.
An identifiable living individual is one who can be identified, directly
or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name,
an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or
more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental,
economic, cultural or social identity of any individual. Information will
relate to a person if it is about them, linked to them, has biographical
significance for them, is used to inform decisions affecting them or has
them as its main focus.
The information you have requested is personal data because it is linked
to individuals who have complained to the Council, and the Council
officers in receiving and responding to these complaints.
Having determined the request is personal data we consider disclosure
would contravene the Data Protection principles, specifically principle
(a) under– Article 5(1) of the GDPR, which states that:
“Personal data shall be processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent
manner in relation to the data subject”.
This exemption is an absolute exemption and the public interest test has
not been considered.
3) Send me the officers' reports from the recent investigation into and
prosecution of The Mirror Shop.
Section 30(1) Exemption Engaged
Section 30(1) of the Act provides that information is exempt from
disclosure if it has at any time been held by the authority for the
purpose of any investigation which the public authority has a duty to
conduct with a view to ascertaining whether a person should be charged
with an offence; any investigation which is conducted by the authority,
and in the circumstances may lead to a decision by the authority to
institute criminal proceedings which the authority has power to conduct;
or any criminal proceedings which the authority has power to conduct.
The reports requested, which are held by the Royal Borough of Greenwich
for the purposes of the Act, relate to the investigation of an individual
for obstruction of the highway, unauthorised marks on a highway and
failure to comply with a Community Protection Notice, which resulted in
the Council successfully prosecuting the individual for these offences.
The reports requested relate to the investigation of this individual,
which was conducted in line with the Council’s official duty, to ascertain
whether an individual should be charged with an offence. This
investigation also led to the decision by the Council to institute
criminal proceedings, in line with its powers to conduct such proceedings,
as well the proceedings in conducted.
The arguments in favour of disclosure are the public interest in how the
Council exercises its regulatory powers; that the case has been prosecuted
and would not be adversely affected by the release of the information; and
the general principles of openness and transparency.
The arguments against disclosure are that publishing this information
could provide potential offenders with useful information about the
Council’s investigative processes, which could be utilised to avoid or
disrupt future investigations, and that the publication of information
leading to the Council’s decision to charge and prosecute an individual
would adversely affect the ability of officers to consider future
decisions whether to charge an individual with an offence, potentially
prejudicing effective law enforcement by placing officers’ decision making
with regards to charging in the public domain.
Accordingly, the information requested is exempt from disclosure.
4) Tell me which court the prosecution took place, and on what date the
fine was handed down.
Bexley Magistrates Court, 6 December 2019
5) Tell how much the fine was and how much the costs were (of the total
£872).
The total fine was £240.00 (excluding victim surcharge) and Prosecution
costs awarded £600.
6) Tell me how much the investigation and prosecution cost in officer time
and external legal costs.
The costs included on the Council’s Cost Schedule for the trial total
£1,647.60
Section 31 Exemption Engaged
Section 31 of the Act provides that information is exempt from disclosure
if its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the prevention
or detection of crime, the apprehension or prosecution of offenders or the
exercise by a public authority of its functions for the purposes set out
in section 31(2) of the Act.
Release of information relating to the cost in officer time of the
investigation and prosecution is held by the Council, although its
publication would be likely to prejudice the prevention and detection of
crime (section 31(1)(a)), the administration of justice (section
31(1)(c)), and the exercise of the Council’s functions for the purposes of
ascertaining whether any person has failed to comply with the law (section
31(2)(a)) or ascertaining whether circumstances which would justify
regulatory action in pursuance of any enactment exist or may arise
(section 31(2)(c)).
The arguments in favour of disclosure are the public interest in how the
Council exercises its regulatory powers, particularly in relation to how
it deploys its staff and other resources; that the case has been
prosecuted and would not be adversely affected by the release of the
information; and the general principles of openness and transparency.
The arguments against disclosure are that the risk of prejudice in respect
of the release of the amount of officer time spent investigating and
prosecuting the case is that this information could be combined with other
information that is already in the public domain, or is otherwise publicly
accessible, such as the number and duties of relevant enforcement staff
employed by the Council, to provide information that would prejudice the
prevention and detection of crime, the administration of justice and the
exercise of functions set out in sections 31(2) of the Act. This combining
of information, commonly known as the mosaic effect, risks providing
insight into how the Council’s enforcement services operate and carry out
their functions, which could be utilised by potential offenders to engage
in offences or to avoid prosecution for offences that they have committed.
Additionally, release of the information risks setting a precedent for the
release of more detailed information in relation to investigations and
prosecutions carried out by the Council, which create a risk that
potential offenders may be able to utilise further disclosures to identify
how the Council deploys enforcement resources, allowing them to identify
and target occasions when resources were limited when committing offences.
Accordingly, the information requested is exempt from disclosure.
If you have any queries about this correspondence, please contact me,
quoting the reference number above.
If you are not satisfied with our response to your request, you can ask
for an Internal Review. Internal review requests must be submitted within
two months of the date of receipt of the response to your original
request. If you wish to do this, please contact us in writing, setting
out why you are dissatisfied.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the Internal Review, you may
apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision.
Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the
Internal Review procedure provided by the Council. You can contact the ICO
by emailing [3][email address], or by post at Customer Contact,
Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
SK9 5AF.
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Jago
Head of Corporate Services
Corporate Services
Directorate of Communities & Environment
Royal Borough of Greenwich
' 020 8921 5044
* 3^rd Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18
6HQ
ü Please consider the environment before printing this email
From: foi
Sent: 20 January 2020 09:53
To: 'Darryl Chamberlain' <[FOI #636054 email]>
Cc: foi <[Greenwich Borough Council request email]>
Subject: FOI-36120: Freedom of Information request - Mirror Shop
Dear Mr Chamberlain
Freedom of Information request: FOI-36120
Apologies, your acknowledgement of this FOI should have read the
following;
Thank you for your request dated 17 January 2020
Your request will be answered by 14 February 2020
If you have any queries about this request, please contact me, quoting the
reference number above.
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Jago
Head of Corporate Services
Corporate Services
Directorate of Communities & Environment
Royal Borough of Greenwich
' 020 8921 5044
* 3^rd Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18
6HQ
ü Please consider the environment before printing this email
From: foi
Sent: 20 January 2020 09:42
To: 'Darryl Chamberlain' <[4][FOI #636054 email]>
Cc: foi <[5][Greenwich Borough Council request email]>
Subject: FOI-36120: Freedom of Information request - Mirror Shop
Dear Mr Chamberlain
Freedom of Information request: FOI-36120
Thank you for your request dated 20 January 2020
Your request will be answered by 17 February 2020
If you have any queries about this request, please contact me, quoting the
reference number above.
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Jago
Head of Corporate Services
Corporate Services
Directorate of Communities & Environment
Royal Borough of Greenwich
' 020 8921 5044
* 3^rd Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18
6HQ
ü Please consider the environment before printing this email
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