ICO rules Council FOI request not vexatious, orders fresh response

ICO Decision Notices

Filed March 12th, 2026

Detected March 19th, 2026

Summary

The UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has ruled that Westmorland and Furness Council wrongly claimed a Freedom of Information (FOI) request regarding an external consultant report was vexatious. The ICO has ordered the Council to issue a fresh response within 30 days.

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What changed

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has issued a decision notice finding that Westmorland and Furness Council improperly relied on section 14(1) of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to refuse disclosure of information concerning an external consultant report related to Appleby Horse Fair. The ICO determined the request was not vexatious and ordered the Council to provide a new response, excluding the section 14(1) exemption.

Westmorland and Furness Council must issue a fresh response to the complainant within 30 calendar days of the decision notice date. Failure to comply may result in the ICO certifying the non-compliance to the High Court, potentially leading to contempt of court proceedings.

What to do next

Issue a fresh response to the FOI request, excluding reliance on FOIA section 14(1)
Ensure the fresh response is issued within 30 calendar days of the decision notice

Penalties

Failure to comply may result in certification of non-compliance to the High Court and potential contempt of court proceedings.

Source document (simplified)

Westmorland and Furness Council

Date 12 March 2026
Sector Local government
Decision(s) FOI 14(1): Upheld The complainant requested from Westmorland and Furness Council (the Council) information regarding the external consultant report relating to Appleby Horse Fair. The Council considered the requested information exempt from disclosure under section 14(1) of FOIA. The Commissioner’s decision is that the requests were not vexatious and the Council was not entitled to rely on section 14(1) of FOIA to refuse to comply with the requests. The Commissioner requires the Council to take the following step to ensure compliance with the legislation: • Issue the complainant with a fresh response to the requests that does not rely on section 14(1) of FOIA. The Council must take this step within 30 calendar days of the date of this decision notice. Failure to comply may result in the Commissioner making written certification of this fact to the High Court pursuant to section 54 of the Act and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.