27 May 2016 – 1328.2015-16 – Freedom of information request – PCCs Fees and Subscriptions
Request
I notice from the Commissioner’s published expenses an entry on 13th June 2013, this is for Invoice Number SI10384, payable to the Association of Chief Police Officers, for PCCs Fees and Subscriptions, for an amount of £10,695.34 with a description of ACPO fees.
Could you please tell me;
- To whom do these fees refer?
- Could you please provide me with electronic copies of the invoice and any other documentation referring to this item of expenditure?
Response
Extent and Result of Searches to Locate Information
To locate the information relevant to your request searches were conducted within North Yorkshire Police.
I can confirm that the information you have requested is held by North Yorkshire Police.
Decision
I have today decided to disclose the located information to you.
Please find enclosed an electronic copy of the invoice described within your request which details membership costs paid by North Yorkshire Police to the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). To clarify, these expenses were subtracted from the North Yorkshire Police budget and not the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioners budget (OPCC). These expenses were published upon the OPCC website in error.
The Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) undertook an independent review of ACPO in 2013 which led to its closure in March 2015 and the establishment of the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) in April 2015. Further information on this can be found upon the following hyperlinks;
http://www.apccs.police.uk/press_release/independent-review-of-the-association-of-chief-police-officers/
http://www.apccs.police.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Independent-review-of-ACPO.pdf
https://www.northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk/taking-action/making-decisions/decisions-made/national-police-collaboration-agreement-in-relation-to-the-setting-up-of-a-co-ordinating-body-known-as-the-national-police-chiefs-council-npcc-0332014/
Relevant redactions have been made in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act to eliminate the disclosure of any 3rd party’s personal information.
Please note that systems used for recording information are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the data. It should be noted therefore that this force’s response to your questions should not be used for comparison purposes with any other responses you may receive.
Section 40 – Personal Information
I am exempting providing you with the redacted information pursuant to Section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act (the Act). This is to ensure anonymity for those identified on the Invoice. I have however provided all other details upon the Invoice to assist in your request, whilst maintaining the elimination of any identification.
Where an individual can be identified by such data, releasing it would clearly breach the first data protection principle of being ‘fair’ to the data subject.
Section 17 of the Act requires North Yorkshire Police, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which: (a) states that fact, (b) specifies the exemption in question and (c) states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.
Section 40(2)(b) is an absolute class based exemption, which does not require a public interest test, but requires the balancing of the legitimate interests of the public against the interests of the individual under the first Data Protection Principle (that of ‘fairness’.)
The type of information you have requested is personal information which can only be disclosed to the individual concerned. This exemption applies because the right given under the Act to request official information held by public authorities does not apply to the personal data of third parties where disclosure of that information would not be fair to the individual, and where there is no legitimate public interest in disclosure.
In all the circumstances of this instance it has been determined that the duty to the individual under the Data Protection Act 1998, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption from disclosure of personal information held by the force in such cases, outweighs the public interest in disclosure.
Releasing personal details to a person other than the data subject would not only breach the data subject’s Data Protection rights it may also breach the obligations placed on an authority under the European Convention on Human Rights.
Pursuant to Section 17(1) of the Act this letter acts as a refusal notice under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in relation to your request.