Surrey Police told to act over outstanding FOIs
One of Surrey Police's outstanding FOI requests has been waiting for a reply for two years
- Published
Surrey Police has been issued an enforcement notice after it "repeatedly failed" to reply to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) says it has handed the force the notice over its backlog, with one outstanding request made in 2022. Requests are expected to be replied to within 20 working days.
The force must come up with an action plan and risks being held in contempt of court if it does not act, the ICO said.
Surrey Police said it was due to a high turnover of information management staff.
Failures 'unacceptable'
The ICO said the force's compliance rate for answering FOIs declined by 15% in 12 months, from 69% in 2023 to 54% in 2024.
"Despite repeated requests for action, Surrey Police has not provided any concrete plan or strategy to address the growing backlog of requests," said ICO.
Phillip Angell, head of Freedom of Information casework at the ICO, said: "Timely responses to Freedom of Information requests are essential for maintaining transparency and trust in public bodies like police forces.
"The failure of Surrey Police to meet even the basic requirements of the Freedom of Information Act is entirely unacceptable."
He said the backlog of requests, some as old as two years, "shows a lack of seriousness about their obligations".
"This cannot continue: the public deserves better, and we have issued this enforcement notice to ensure that they get it,” Mr Angell said.
Surrey Police has been told it must submit an action plan within 30 days, including specific measures to address the backlog.
The ICO said the force could be held in contempt of court if it does not comply.
'High turnover'
Asst Chf Con Peter Gardner said: "We fully accept that our service levels have fallen below expected standards.
“This year we had an exceptionally high turnover of staff within information management, resulting in a large proportion of the team being new in post. This has had an impact on our compliance rate and we are working to reduce this backlog as quickly as possible.
“Whilst recruitment and training of new staff has been underway, priority was given to Rights of Access and Court Order requests which have continued to be processed within the statutory timeframes."
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