The University of Nottingham

The complainant has requested information about a report on historic ties to the transatlantic slave economy. The University of Nottingham (“the University”) denied holding some of the information. It relied on sections 36 (prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs), 41 (breach of confidence), 42 (legal professional privilege) and 43 (commercial interests) to withhold the information. The Commissioner’s decision is that the University has correctly engaged section 36 of FOIA in respect of information falling within the scope of parts 2 and 3 and, where it has done so, the balance of the public interest favours maintaining the exemption. The University has also correctly engaged section 42 in relation to the internal legal advice sought and provided. Neither section 41 nor 43 applies to any of the remaining information. As the University did not cite, within 20 working days, all the exemptions on which it ultimately came to rely, it breached section 17 of FOIA. The Commissioner requires the public authority to disclose all the withheld information, apart from the information it Commissioner has determined can be withheld under section 36 and 42 of FOIA, with appropriate redactions for any personal data under section 40(2).