Decision Notice 067/2024: Local Medical Committee Agreement – failure to
respond
Applicant: The Applicant
Authority: Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board
Case Ref: 202400382
Summary
The Applicant asked the Authority for information about the LMC Agreement where secondary care
consultants are required to communicate the outcome of consultations to patients, specifically
evidence that consultants had been reminded of their responsibilities for doing so. This decision
finds that the Authority failed to respond to the request and request for review within the timescales
allowed by the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA).
Background
1. The Applicant made an information request to the Authority on 4 December 2023.
2. The Authority did not respond to the information request, but sent an acknowledgement on
28 December 2023.
3. On 8 February 2024, the Applicant wrote to the Authority requiring a review of in respect of
its failure to respond. The Application also chased this up on 1 March 2024 and received an
acknowledgement the same day.
4. The Applicant did not receive a response to her requirement for review.
5. The Applicant wrote to the Commissioner on 11 March 2024, stating that she was
dissatisfied with the Authority’s failure to respond and applying to the Commissioner for a
decision in terms of section 47(1) of FOISA.
6. The Commissioner determined that the application complied with section 47(2) of FOISA and
that he had the power to carry out an investigation.
Investigation
7. Section 49(3)(a) of FOISA requires the Commissioner to notify public authorities of an
application and to give them an opportunity to comment. The Commissioner did this on
14 March 2024.
8. The Authority did not provide the Commissioner with any submissions.
9. Section 10(1) of FOISA gives Scottish public authorities a maximum of 20 working days
following the date of receipt of the request to comply with a request for information. This is
subject to qualifications which are not relevant in this case.
10. It is a matter of fact that the Authority did not provide a response to the Applicant’s request
for information within 20 working days, so the Commissioner finds that it failed to comply with
section 10(1) of FOISA.
11. Section 21(1) of FOISA gives Scottish public authorities a maximum of 20 working days
following the date of receipt of the requirement to comply with a requirement for review.
Again, this is subject to qualifications which are not relevant in this case.
12. It is a matter of fact that the Authority did not provide a response to the Applicant’s
requirement for review within 20 working days, so the Commissioner finds that it failed to
comply with section 21(1) of FOISA.
13. The remainder of section 21 sets out the requirements to be followed by a Scottish public
authority in carrying out a review. As no review has been carried out in this case, the
Commissioner finds that the Authority failed to discharge these requirements: he now
requires a review to be carried out in accordance with section 21.
14. The Commissioner recommends that the Authority considers whether it would be appropriate
to apologise to the Applicant for its failure to comply.
Decision
The Commissioner finds that the Authority failed to comply with Part 1 of the Freedom of
Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) in dealing with the information request made by the
Applicant. In particular, the Authority failed to respond to the Applicant’s request for information
and requirement for review within the timescales laid down by sections 10(1) and 21(1) of FOISA.
The Commissioner requires the Authority to respond to the Applicant’s requirement for review, by
10 June 2024.
Appeal
Should either the Applicant or the Authority wish to appeal against this decision, they have the right
to appeal to the Court of Session on a point of law only. Any such appeal must be made within
42 days after the date of intimation of this decision.
Enforcement
If the Authority fails to comply with this decision, the Commissioner has the right to certify to the
Court of Session that the Authority has failed to comply. The Court has the right to inquire into the
matter and may deal with the Authority as if it had committed a contempt of court.
Wendy Snedden
Freedom of Information Officer
25 April 2024
