The Official Secrets Acts 1911 - 1989
Dear Police Service of Northern Ireland,
I am writing to respectfully make a request in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000. My request is as follows:-
1) Please, can you provide a list of all employee roles who are employed by your authority and are subject to the provisions as set out in the Official Secrets Acts 1911-1989?
This can be provided in any format, however, a spreadsheet detailing each role and a mark as to whether the role requires the role holder to sign a declaration as to their recognition of being bound thus required to comply with the Act(s).
2) Please provide a disclosure of the format used by your authority which requires the signature of any role holder who is subject to provisions as set out in the Official Secrets Acts 1911-1989 such as an "Official Secrets Acts & Confidentiality Declaration"
If I am able to provide any further information in order to assist your search for information in order to successfully respond to this request, please do not hesitate to contact me.
I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Yours faithfully,
Ryan Jarvis
This e-mail has been marked OFFICIAL [PUBLIC];
19th November 2019
Dear Mr Jarvis,
FREEDOM of INFORMATION ACT 2000
I write in connection with your request for information dated 19th
November 2019 which was received by the Police Service of Northern Ireland
(PSNI) on 19th November 2019. I note you seek access to the following
information:
The Official Secrets Act
This request will be dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000. A response should be sent to you within 20 working
days however I would like to advise you that PSNI are currently
experiencing a delay in the processing of requests and we aim to respond
to your request as soon as possible.
If your request is unclear and clarification is required the 20 day
legislative time limit dictated by the Freedom of Information Act 2000
will be stopped until we receive clarification of your request. The ICO
guidance at paragraph 40 of the link below sets out that the clock begins
anew the day after the clarification is received. It states
“If the requester subsequently provides enough detail to enable the
authority to identify and locate the information, then the authority must
respond to the clarified request within a new 20 working day time limit
with the ‘clock’ starting the day after it receives the required
clarification. “
The link for this is:
[1]https://ico.org.uk/media/for-organisatio...
In the event where the cost of complying with the request would exceed the
“appropriate level”, which is fixed at £450, as stated in the Freedom of
Information Regulations 2004, it is the policy of the PSNI to close the
request. You will however be notified of this decision and given an
opportunity to refine and resubmit the request.
If your request requires either full or partial transference to another
public authority in order to answer your query, again, you will be
notified.
If you have any queries regarding your request please write or contact the
Corporate Information Branch on 028 9070 0164. Please remember to quote
the reference number listed above in any future communications with the
Corporate Information Branch.
If you are dissatisfied in any way with the handling of your request, you
have the right to request a review. You should do this as soon as
possible, or in any case within two months of the date of issue of this
letter. In the event that you require a review to be undertaken, you can
do so by writing to the Head of Corporate Information Branch, PSNI
Headquarters, 65 Knock Road, Belfast, BT5 6LE or by emailing
[email address].
If following an internal review, carried out by an independent decision
maker, you were to remain dissatisfied in any way with the handling of the
request you may make a complaint, under Section 50 of the Freedom of
Information Act, to the Information Commissioner’s Office and ask that
they investigate whether the PSNI has complied with the terms of the
Freedom of Information Act. You can write to the Information Commissioner
at Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane,
Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF. In most circumstances the Information
Commissioner will not investigate a complaint unless an internal review
procedure has been carried out, however the Commissioner has the option to
investigate the matter at his discretion.
Yours sincerely,
John
FOI Decision Maker
Corporate Information Branch
PSNI HQ Brooklyn
References
Visible links
1. https://ico.org.uk/media/for-organisatio...
Dear Police Service of Northern Ireland,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Police Service of Northern Ireland's handling of my FOI request 'The Official Secrets Acts 1911 - 1989'.
Response to this request is delayed. By law, Police Service of Northern Ireland should normally have responded promptly and by 18 December 2019
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/t...
Yours faithfully,
Ryan Jarvis
This e-mail has been marked OFFICIAL [PUBLIC];
Subject: FOI-2019-03008
14th January 2020
Dear Mr. Jarvis,
FREEDOM of INFORMATION ACT 2000
Following your request for us to review the lateness of a response in
connection with your request for information concerning:
The Official Secrets Act
I can advise you that Police Service of Northern Ireland has now completed
its review - please see attachment.
Yours sincerely,
Ms Morris
Corporate Information
This e-mail has been marked OFFICIAL [PUBLIC];
Subject: FOI-2019-03008
31st January 2020
Dear Mr. Jarvis,
FREEDOM of INFORMATION ACT 2000
I apologise for the delay in responding to your request.
I write in connection with your request for information received by the
Police Service of Northern Ireland concerning:
Official Secrets Act
Please find attached response to your request.
Yours sincerely
Gillian
FOI Decision Maker
Corporate Information Branch
PSNI HQ Brooklyn
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