DPA case FS50867088 – Dismissed (United Kingdom, 2020)

ICO examined a complaint submitted against the Northamptonshire Police regarding the way in which it handled a request for information. Namely, the complainant requested information from the Northamptonshire Police on whether it forcibly entered a property that he owns, but leases to a tenant, on suspicion that the property contained drugs. The complainant stated in the request that he could not obtain the information from the tenant itself. The Northamptonshire Police responded that it will neither confirm nor deny whether the entry took place, as sharing any information without the tenant’s consent would be contrary to the Data Protection Act 2018. Based on the complaint, ICO examined whether the Northamptonshire Police had the right to apply the section 40 of the FOIA ("neither confirm nor deny" provisions), which would allow it to neither confirm nor deny whether or not it held the requested information. These provisions are applied when confirming or denying would in itself disclose sensitive or potentially exempt information. In this regard, ICO considered whether the Northamptonshire Police complied with the criteria prescribed for relying on the "neither confirm nor deny" provisions, namely: (i) whether confirming or denying would constitute the disclosure of a third party’s personal data, and (ii) whether confirming or denying would contravene one of the data protection principles. Regarding the first criteria, ICO concluded that confirming or denying whether Northamptonshire Police forced entry at a specific property would involve the disclosure of a third party’s personal data (i.e. the tenant’s). Although the request for information relates to the residential address and no individual is explicitly named, it is possible to identify the tenant as the occupant of the property. ICO therefore concluded that the information on whether Northamptonshire Police forced entry at the property is in fact information which relates to the tenant, withing the meani