OIC Decisions
Decisions issued from January 2022 onwards can be found here. Earlier decisions will be uploaded in the coming months. If you require an earlier decision then please email us at info@oic.ie
Decisions issued from January 2022 onwards can be found here. Earlier decisions will be uploaded in the coming months. If you require an earlier decision then please email us at info@oic.ie
Summary: The Senior Investigator varied the Department's decision. She affirmed the Department's refusal to grant access to some of the records on the basis that they were outside the scope of the request, or contained personal information with the public interest not warranting release (section 37), or comprised a record given to the Taoiseach for the purposes of Dail proceedings (section 42(j)). She annulled the Department's refusal to grant access to a part of one record on the basis that it was outside the scope of the request, and directed the Department to make a new decision on this, subject to establishing that the applicant wants to have access to the information concerned. She annulled its refusal to grant access to the rest of the records and directed that access be granted to them.
Date: 29-11-2017
Case Number: 170296
Public Body: Department of Health
Section of the Act.: s.42, s.42(j), s.30, s.37
Summary: The Senior Investigator affirmed the decision of the HSE to refuse the request under section 37(3).
Date: 29-11-2017
Case Number: 170432
Public Body: Health Service Executive
Section of the Act.: s.37, s.37(3),
Summary: The Senior Investigator annulled the decision of the Department. He found that section 29(1) does not apply to the withheld information and directed the release of same.
Date: 28-11-2017
Case Number: 170253
Public Body: Department of Finance
Section of the Act.: s.29
Summary: The Senior Investigator annulled the decision of the Department of Education & Skills. He found that it was not justified in refusing to grant access to the records under section 29 of the FOI Act.
Date: 23-11-2017
Case Number: 170482
Public Body: Department of Education & Skills
Section of the Act.: s.29, s.29(1),
Summary: The Senior Investigator affirmed the decision of the Regulator under sections 35(1)(b) and 36(1)(b) of the FOI Act on the basis that the redacted comments disclosed confidential commercial plans and could otherwise result in harm to PLI's competitive position. As the partial release of the refusal letters had served the public interest in openness and transparency to some degree, she found that, on balance, the public interest would be better served by refusing access to the records at issue.
Date: 22-11-2017
Case Number: 170248
Public Body: Office of the Regulator of the National Lottery
Section of the Act.:
Summary: The Senior Investigator affirmed the decision of the ODCE on the ground that the FOI Act does not apply to the footage by virtue of Schedule 1, Part 1(g).
Date: 22-11-2017
Case Number: 170474
Public Body: Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement
Section of the Act.:
Summary: The Senior Investigator affirmed the decision of the Department.
Date: 21-11-2017
Case Number: 170250
Public Body: Department of Social Protection
Section of the Act.: s.15, s.15(1)(a),
Summary: The Senior Investigator varied the decision of the Department. He found that the Department was justified, under section 15(1)(a), in refusing access to one report on the ground that the report sought does not exist. He found that section 32(1)(c) applies to paragraphs 7.3 to 7.8 of the report sought at item 9 of the applicant's request and to paragraph 4.5 of the report sought at item 18. He directed the release of paragraphs 7.1, 7.2, 7.9 and 7.10 of item 9 and paragraph 10.2 of item 18.
Date: 21-11-2017
Case Number: 170402
Public Body: Department of Justice and Equality
Section of the Act.: s.32, s.32(1)(c), s.15
Summary: The Senior Investigator varied the decision of the IPS. He found that the IPS was justified in refusing access on the ground that the information sought falls within the meaning of section 37(1) of the FOI Act.
Date: 20-11-2017
Case Number: 170142
Public Body: Irish Prison Service
Section of the Act.: s.37, s.37(1),
Summary: The Senior Investigator affirmed the decision of the Council. He found that no right of access would exist to any such records as they would have been created before the effective date applicable to the Council, i.e. 21 October 1998.
Date: 20-11-2017
Case Number: 170419
Public Body: Galway County Council
Section of the Act.: s.11