Access to information

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Publication scheme
Guide to published information
Requesting information
Our commitment to openness and transparency

Publication scheme

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 establishes a right of access to all types of “recorded” information held by public authorities and imposes obligations on public authorities to disclose information, subject to a range of exemptions. Environmental information is exempt from the Freedom of Information Act, as it has its own information access regime, the Environmental Information Regulations 2004. The Environmental Information Regulations also provide a right of access (to information which is environmental information), subject to a range of exceptions. The IPC is subject to both the Freedom of Information Act and the Environmental Information Regulations. Further information about access to information can be found on the Information Commissioner’s Office website.

The Freedom of Information Act requires us to maintain a publication scheme and to proactively publish certain categories of information. The Environmental Information Regulations oblige us to progressively make environmental information available by electronic means. We have adopted the model publication scheme in line with the Information Commissioner’s Development and Maintenance initiative which commits us to making certain information routinely available to the public. The publication scheme will also help you find environmental information (such as the environmental statements provided by applicants) which is available on our website. A copy of the model scheme can be accessed here. As a new organisation, we may not yet hold information under every class of information but we will add information as it becomes available. We will also review and update this information on a regular basis.

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Guide to published information

The Guide to Information in our Publication Scheme gives details of what information we will provide under the Publication Scheme and where you can find the information. You can download information which is published on our website free of charge and no charge will be made for consulting our public register or if you want to inspect application documents. There may be a charge for printing, copying or postage if you request a paper copy of some documents published on our website or a large volume of printed material. This charge will be made in accordance with our charging policy and you will be told what charge may apply at the time of your request.

If you have any difficulty in accessing the published information on our website please contact our Information Access Officer (whose details are below).

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Requesting information

If you wish to make a request for information we may hold which is not routinely published as part of our Publication Scheme you can submit a written request to our Information Access Officer either by post to the address below or by email.

Please let us know your preferred correspondence details (e.g. email or postal address) and clearly describe the information you need in as much detail as possible.

The Infrastructure Planning Commission
Temple Quay House
Temple Quay
Bristol
BS1 6PN
Tel: 0303 444 5000
Fax: 0303 444 5002

You may also phone to request environmental information (under the Environmental Information Regulations) using the number above.

Once we receive your request for information we will endeavour to respond to you as soon as possible. We aim to respond to all requests for information within twenty working days. However, in certain circumstances, it may take us longer than this to respond. We will write and advise you if for any reason we are unable to provide you with a response within twenty working days.

If you request information which is not freely available on our website the Freedom of Information Act and Environmental Information Regulations make provision for a fee to be charged for making the information available. The charge will be made in accordance with our charging policy although we expect to handle the majority of requests without any charge If we decide that a fee should be charged we will send you a “fees notice” letting you know the amount you will need to pay before we can provide the information you want. If we think it will cost more than £450 to find the information and prepare it for release we can turn down your request or help you to refine or limit your request so that it comes within this cost limit.

If you wish make a complaint about how we have dealt with the request you have made under the Freedom of Information Act or the Environmental Information Regulations or if you are dissatisfied with the outcome of the consideration of your request for information you can ask the IPC’s Quality Assurance Team to carry out an internal review.

If you remain dissatisfied, you may appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on the handling of your request. The Information Commissioner is independent and polices the operation of the Freedom of Information Act and the Environmental Information Regulations can issue a notice specifying what steps should be taken to bring about compliance with any of the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act or the Environmental Information Regulations.

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Our commitment to openness and transparency

One of the fundamental values of the IPC is its commitment to openness and transparency in the conduct of its business and on 13 November 2009 the IPC published its Policy Commitment to Openness and Transparency. In accordance with this policy commitment the IPC will operate with a presumption in favour of openness when publishing information or when providing information in response to a request under the Freedom of Information Act which is not routinely published as part of our Publication Scheme or to comply with any statutory obligations under the Planning Act 2008 and related secondary legislation.

Full details of responses to requests under the Freedom of Information Act and Environmental Information Regulations can be found in the IPC’s responses to requests for information page.

There will be limited circumstances in which the IPC withholds information including:

  • When its publication or disclosure is prevented by law including the Data Protection Act 1998.
  • When its publication or disclosure would or would be likely to damage the effective conduct of the IPC’s statutory functions or the conduct of its business.
  • When its publication or disclosure would adversely affect the protection of the environment to which the information relates

Applicants and other parties should not therefore provide information to the IPC which they would wish to remain confidential. It is the IPC’s policy that any such information will be published by the IPC.