Department of Education Northern Ireland
- Date 29 July 2025
- Sector Central government
- Decision(s) FOI 35(1)(a): Not upheld, FOI 40(2): Partly upheld, FOI 43(2): Not upheld
The complainant has requested information associated with meetings of the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment. The Department of Education Northern Ireland (DE) disclosed some information, advised it doesn’t hold some and withheld the remaining information under sections 35, 40 and 43 of FOIA. These exemptions concern the formulation of government policy, personal data and commercial interests, respectively. The Commissioner’s decision is that DE has correctly applied sections 35(1)(a) and 43(2). DE has also correctly applied section 40(2) to most of the information to which it applied this exemption but incorrectly applied it to a small amount. DE must take the following step to ensure compliance with the legislation: Disclose the name of the auditor in the report document.