12 November 2021
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Full Council met on Tuesday and the Clerk circulated the internal auditor’s report on Wednesday. I am spoilt for choice for something to blog.
However, I’ve decided to blog about the part of Full Council I didn’t attend.
Items 8.1 – 8.6 on the agenda were six requests for internal reviews made under the Freedom of Information Act. These are reviews people can request if they are dissatisfied with the response they get to a request for information from the Council.
I am one of the people who asked for an internal review.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t work out which of the six requests on the agenda related to requests in which I had an interest. I wasn’t helped by the non-appearance of Appendices 14 and 15 which the agenda refers to under Item 8.
So I decided I would declare an interest in all of them just to be on the safe side.
The Chairman kindly put item 8 at the end of the agenda so I was able to go home early.
I have already deplored the fact that, as a councillor, I have to use the Freedom of Information Act to require the Council to provide the information I need to make decisions at Council. I have already deplored the fact, as a member of the Council, that on many of these requests the Council has not complied with the Act.
But just work this out.
Each of those requests require three councillors to sit on a HPC Working Group to carry out the review. Those councillors are responsible for preparing a report on the review.
There were six councillors at the meeting. I had declared an interest which left five. The Chairman had an interest in at least one of the requests which related to his correspondence on Country Supplies.
So most of the work of the reviews would fall on four councillors – if they were willing.
This will probably require a minimum of 18 hours of councillor time to resolve – and possibly twice this.
And there are possibly more requests for internal reviews in the pipeline.
All because the Council didn’t comply with the law in the first place by providing the information requested or giving a proper reason why not.
This is a complete waste of councillors’ time.
No wonder it is difficult to find residents willing to become councillors.
Postscript - for those who would like to know what should happen when you make a request for information to HPC.
Hughenden Parish Council doesn’t have a policy on freedom of information requests nor any guidance on its website to advise members of the public how to make requests.
However, if you write to the Clerk and request information, she should do one of three things within 20 working days: -
1. Tell you that the Council holds the information and provide it; or
2. Tell you that the Council holds the information but has decided not to provide it. In this case, the Council must provide you with an explanation for withholding the information and tell you under what exemption of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 it is withholding the information; or
3. Tell you it does not hold the information you requested.
If you are dissatisfied, you can then ask the Clerk for an internal review of the response. This review is carried out by councillors and should take no more than 20 working days.
Sometimes it does take longer if the issue is complex. However, the Council has to provide you with the outcome of the review by law within 40 working days.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the review, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office.