Hackney Council EIR Procedural Breaches Decision
Summary
The ICO issued a Decision Notice against London Borough of Hackney Council finding breaches of the Environmental Information Regulations. The Council failed to issue proper refusal notices under regulation 14(2) and failed to conduct internal reviews under regulation 11(2) when handling a request about the Future Shoreditch Area Action Plan. While the Council's reliance on regulation 12(4)(b) to refuse the request was upheld as valid, procedural failures constitute regulatory breaches.
What changed
The ICO determined that Hackney Council breached EIR regulation 11(2) by failing to provide adequate internal review procedures and regulation 14(2) by not issuing proper refusal notices when initially disclosing then subsequently refusing information. The Council's substantive reliance on regulation 12(4)(b) to refuse the request as manifestly unreasonable was upheld, meaning the information need not be disclosed.
Affected parties must ensure compliance with procedural requirements when handling environmental information requests. Public authorities cannot rely on substantive exemptions without following correct procedural steps including timely refusal notices and internal review opportunities. ICO enforcement signals continued scrutiny of local government EIR compliance.
What to do next
- Issue correct refusal notices within compliance timeframe
- Conduct proper internal reviews for information requests
- Review EIR handling procedures to prevent recurrence
Archived snapshot
Apr 8, 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.
London Borough of Hackney Council
- Date 31 March 2026
- Sector Local government
- Decision(s) EIR 11(2): Upheld, EIR 12(4)(b): Not upheld, EIR 14(2): Upheld The complainant submitted a request to the London Borough of Hackney (the Council) seeking information on the Future Shoreditch Area Action Plan. The Council initially disclosed some information to the complainant before subsequently seeking to refuse the request on the basis of regulation 12(4)(b) (manifestly unreasonable). The Commissioner’s decision is that the Council can rely on regulation 12(4)(b) to refuse the request. However it breached the procedural requirements of regulations 14(2) (refusal notices) and 11(2) (internal reviews) in its handling of this request.
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