(73 KB)Can personal data be obtained under the EIRs?
Access to personal data is governed by different rules depending on whether an individual is seeking access to information about him/herself or another person (a third party). If an individual is seeking information about him/herself, the request falls within the scope of the Data Protection Act and should not be dealt with under the EIRs. Under such circumstances the request is treated as a subject access request under section 7 of the Data Protection Act. Where an individual is seeking environmental information which contains details about a third party, such information may be disclosable under the EIRs.
Are there provisions in the EIRs which may prevent third party personal data being disclosed?
Regulation 13 does exempt personal information which is not about the applicant if regulations 13(2) (a) or (b) or 13(3) of the EIRs apply. Therefore, disclosure of personal data to a 3rd party must not occur if:
What types of personal data may be disclosable under the EIRs?
There is no hard and fast rule on what can be disclosed as each case should be considered on its own merits. However, information about some public servants in their capacity as public servants (e.g., responsibilities, grade, certain work contact details etc) could be disclosable, especially for those in public-facing roles. Information supplied to a public authority in some circumstances (e.g. in response to a consultation exercise, or expressing views as a matter of public debate), including from members of the public, which might include personal data, may also be disclosable. However, if the member of the public has stated that he/she does not wish his/her response to be made publicly available this would be taken into consideration.
What types of personal data may not be disclosable under the EIRs?
It is unlikely that sensitive personal data (e.g. information such as that pertaining to health, ethnic status, sexual behaviour) would be disclosable to a third party. Personal data, such as a home address, telephone number, marital status or information about an individual’s personal life is also unlikely to be disclosable.
Would the presence of personal data prevent disclosure of the remaining information falling within the scope of a request?
It might be possible to disclose the remaining information where it is possible to separate the personal data from the other information requested, or to provide a summary that excludes any exempt personal data (and where no other exemptions apply that might exempt the remaining information from disclosure).
Further Information
A more in depth consideration of all the provisions of regulation 13 can be found in Chapter 7 of the EIR detailed guidance.
Page last modified: 9 October 2007
Page published: 9 October 2007