Council’s FOI performance improving after risk of ‘hefty fine’, members told

Inset: Interim chief executive of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, Valerie Watts

The interim chief executive of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has indicated the local authority previously faced the prospect of a “hefty fine” over delays in responding to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.

Speaking at a recent meeting of the borough council, Valerie Watts told members the council’s FOI performance had been “lagging behind” in the past.

During discussion of the Corporate Plan update for the period between April and September, Larne Lough DUP councillor Gregg McKeen queried why the council’s internal target requires 100 per cent of FOI requests to be processed within the statutory timeframe of 20 working days, when the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) regulatory expectation is set at 95 per cent.

Cllr McKeen noted that the council’s performance currently stands at 97 per cent within the statutory timeframe, with delays attributed to the complexity of some requests and the resources required to process them. He suggested the council may need to align its internal targets more closely with the ICO’s expectations.

However, the report noted that performance continues to meet the Information Commissioner’s Office “regulatory expectation” of 95 per cent and that none of the council’s FOI decisions had been overturned by the ICO.

Carrickfergus Castle DUP Alderman Billy Ashe asked whether it was a legislative requirement for FOI requests to be answered by councils within what he believed to be a 21-day target.

“Is that not legislation rather than a target?” he asked.

An officer told the meeting:

“We set our own internal targets, which we have set at 100 per cent, because it is a legislative requirement. I wasn’t actually aware there was an ICO separate expectation around it, and that is not a target per se. It is really what they expect public authorities to achieve, but we still set our own internal target of 100 per cent.”

Ald Ashe said:

“I fully agree with my colleague but, at the same time, I would not like the council to be endorsing not meeting its legislative responsibilities.”

Ms Watts said the council had made significant progress in recent years.

“We have come a long, long way in terms of our response time to FOIs,” she said.

“A number of years ago, I thought we were going to be in line for quite a hefty fine from the Information Commissioner’s Office because we were so lagging behind, and I commend the work that has been done by officers of council to get us as far as we have.

“I can certainly sleep a bit easier at night knowing we are meeting good targets here and are responding well within the timeframe. It is a good news story.”

The report states that work is “ongoing to improve response times and ensure that requests are prioritised appropriately”.

Despite ongoing challenges, performance continues to meet the Information Commissioner’s Office regulatory expectation of 95 per cent.