Freedom of Information
Making a request
Applicants who wish to make a request for information from the Competition Commission should take the following steps:
Your request for information must be in writing and must state:
- Your name
- Your return address
- A description of the information that is requested
You can submit your request to the Planning team by e-mail at foi@competition-commission.gsi.gov.uk or to the following address:
Head of Planning
Competition Commission
Victoria House, Southampton Row
London WC1B 4AD
Timescales
Under the Freedom of Information Act, the CC is required to respond to your request for information within 20 working days following the date on which your request was received. Furthermore, the Act makes a number of provisions for extra time to be taken in responding to a request, for example:
- The timescale is put on hold if, after initial consideration of your request, a fee is requested. When a request for payment is sent to you, the 20-day working deadline is put on hold and will start running again (from where it stopped, not back to the beginning of the 20 days) when the appropriate fee is received.
- If the information being sought has to be considered under an exemption to which the public interest test applies, then the timescale is extended by a “reasonable period”. The CC will, however, tell you within the 20-day period which exemption(s) it believes apply to the information requested, and give you its estimate of the date by which it expects to reach a decision regarding the application of this exemption.
Transferring requests
If you have requested information which the CC believes is held by another public authority, it may be appropriate for you to re-apply to the public authority. Alternatively, the CC may transfer your request for information to another public authority.
The CC may need to consult third parties, including another public authority, in order to reach a decision on whether the requested information can be released. If you wish to be notified before the CC consults a third party about your request for information, you should state this in your application.
Fees
The CC may charge a fee for complying with a request for information in accordance with the The Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004 .
You will receive a Fees Notice which sets out the amount you must pay to the CC.
If the cost of locating, retrieving and extracting the information is £450 or less, the CC may charge for photocopying, printing and postage costs. If the cost is more than £450, the CC is not obliged to comply with your request. However, the CC will consider whether it is possible to provide any information within the cost ceiling of £450. It will also consider whether it is reasonable to answer your request and charge an appropriate fee on a case by case basis.
