Birmingham City Council FOI 12 Upheld
Summary
The ICO has upheld a complaint against Birmingham City Council regarding a Freedom of Information Act request. The Council cited section 12 (appropriate limit) to refuse providing information about invoices paid from April 2019. The ICO determined the Council is not entitled to rely on section 12. The Council must now issue a fresh response to the request without relying on section 12(1) of FOIA.
What changed
The ICO issued a Decision Notice finding that Birmingham City Council improperly refused a Freedom of Information Act request by citing section 12 (appropriate limit). The Commissioner determined the Council is not entitled to rely on this exemption and must provide a complete response to the request for information about invoices paid from April 2019 without using section 12(1) as a basis for refusal.\n\nPublic authorities should ensure any reliance on section 12 FOIA is properly justified, as the ICO will scrutinize whether compliance would genuinely exceed the appropriate limit. The Council must now dedicate resources to locate and disclose the requested invoice information.
What to do next
- Issue a fresh response to the original FOIA request without relying on section 12(1) of FOIA
Archived snapshot
Apr 14, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Birmingham City Council
- Date 7 April 2026
- Sector Local government
- Decision(s) FOI 12: Upheld The complainant requested information about invoices paid from 1 April 2019. Birmingham City Council (the Council) provided some information but the complainant pointed out that it had not provided all of the information relevant to the request. In its internal review the Council stated that it was now relying on section 12 (appropriate limit) of the FOIA as compliance with the request would exceed the appropriate limit. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Council is not entitled to rely on section 12 to refuse the request. The Commissioner requires the Council issue a fresh response to the request that does not rely on section 12(1) of FOIA.
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