Liverpool City Council appeal ICO decision requiring release of bus lane suspension report

Liverpool City Council appeal ICO decision requiring release of bus lane suspension report                                             Edited 20th April 2016 by John Brace to add in missing closing parenthesis. The author of this piece is the Appellant in two cases before the First-Tier Tribunal (Information Rights). These are John Michael Brace v Information Commissioner & Wirral Metropolitan … Continue reading “Liverpool City Council appeal ICO decision requiring release of bus lane suspension report”

Mayor Joe Anderson speaking at a meeting of Liverpool City Council (8th April 2015)

Liverpool City Council appeal ICO decision requiring release of bus lane suspension report

                                           

Mayor Joe Anderson speaking at a meeting of Liverpool City Council (8th April 2015)
Mayor Joe Anderson speaking at a meeting of Liverpool City Council

Edited 20th April 2016 by John Brace to add in missing closing parenthesis.

The author of this piece is the Appellant in two cases before the First-Tier Tribunal (Information Rights). These are John Michael Brace v Information Commissioner & Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council (EA/2016/0033) and John Brace v Information Commissioner & Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority (EA/2016/0054).

Liverpool City Council have taken the step of appealing to the First Tier-Tribunal (Information Rights) a decision notice of the regulator ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office). The decision notice required Liverpool City Council to provide the draft report in response to a request. However due to the appeal, the outcome of the appeal will determine whether Liverpool City Council have to release the draft report.

The case is listed as case number EA/2016/0084. The decision notice issued on the 8th March 2016 (FER0601794 (which can be viewed on ICO’s website)) is about an Environmental Information Regulations request for a draft Mott McDonald report to Liverpool City Council about Liverpool’s bus lanes. The title of the report is Liverpool Transport Corridors & Bus Lane Suspension.

Had the decision not been appealed, Liverpool City Council would’ve had to release the draft report before polling day (5th May 2016) in the combined elections for local councillor, Mayor of Liverpool and Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside.

Liverpool City Council disagree that the draft report should be released on an alleged claim of commercial confidentiality and an alleged claim of adverse impact on those who supplied information to Mott McDonald. The Information Commissioner’s view is that Liverpool City Council have failed to show that these exceptions are engaged.

The final report can be read on Liverpool City Council’s website.

The suspension of various bus lanes in Liverpool has been unpopular with at least one major bus company who stated at a public meeting that it has affected the punctuality of buses on the affected routes. The representative of the bus company also called for the bus lane suspensions to be reversed.

The decision by the Labour administration on Liverpool City Council to proceed with the suspension of the bus lanes was opposed by the Green Party opposition on Liverpool City Council.

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Author: John Brace

New media journalist from Birkenhead, England who writes about Wirral Council. Published and promoted by John Brace, 134 Boundary Road, Bidston, CH43 7PH. Printed by UK Webhosting Ltd t/a Tsohost, 113-114 Buckingham Avenue, Slough, Berkshire, England, SL1 4PF.

4 thoughts on “Liverpool City Council appeal ICO decision requiring release of bus lane suspension report”

  1. Why am I sat here tapping, again, on this keyboard? I’ll explain fully once I’ve insulted Joe. Is it just me or is he becoming more and more like ***** ****** off the ***** ****** or ***** from ******* ******. My God! Once Joe ******** **** *** **** ***** *** ******** ***** ****** **** ******* *** ******!

    I stopped transmitting my pointless drivel and tripe because my wife, my tormentor of forty one rotten years felt, ‘the spark of love has gone from our wedded Union. Let’s spend more time together. Please stop blogging’. And I did, if only because I was bloody starving and she’d refused to cook for me until I stopped and gave her my attention.

    Last night put an end to this pledge and that’s why I’m writing this bloody garbage now.

    We were sat in bed watching Columbo and it’s very important to the reader to be cognisant that we watched the entire episode from the beginning and other than an unhealthy appetite for Clams, Intercourse and Ale, it’s the only bloody thing we’ve got in common. We both love watching Columbo.

    As I was laid there nibbling on a particularly tough piece of pork rind, no doubt harvested from the arse end of the beast that was slaughtered to gift me my kilo of pork scratching, she said, ‘I reckon the fella there did it’. Course, given that we’ve been watching Columbo together for the best part of four bloody decades and I’d thought that she had always understood that the bloody rotten killer was identified at the beginning of the episode, I leapt out of bed and for a brief moment I seriously considered drawing my sword from its scabbard and slicing her up.

    At this point it’s relevant to point out that whenever we engage in intercourse I have to dress up as a World War Two Japaneese Sea Admiral and that’s why I had a sword.

    Anyway, I chose not to murder the old bag and instead I hurtled downstairs, knocked the top off a bottle of ale, fed it into my fat face as quickly as I could and then sat in silence smoking my hand rolled cigarette contemplating her sat up in the bed waiting for bloody Columbo to trap the killer and have her bloody say, ‘I told you it was him’.

    Needless to say I climbed the stairs, got back into bed and I didn’t say a single word.
    And that’s why I’ve decided to tap out this pointless sequence of vowels and consonants to escape the drudgery of life with my wife. It’s my only release as I edge ever closer to my headstone that’ll read, ‘ a life lived unblemished by any form of achievement’.

    * Edited 19/4/16 by Editor John Brace because of s.106 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (due to Joe Anderson being a candidate in the Mayoral election).

      1. Hello Joe, Attention seeking! Of course I am. I’m desperate for the attention and so are many who contribute toward this and other blogs. It’s the whole point lad. Getting read, getting noticed and above all getting the attention I so badly crave.
        As for ‘retiring’…I’m always doing it and then, after I’ve upped my medication, recharged my batteries and off I go again transmitting my pointless offerings on this, that and the bloody other.
        Mind, I’m a little frightened that you may have become fixated upon me Joe. Don’t dig to deeply. You’ll only confirm your initial suspicions that I am indeed a complete idiot. My very warmest regards to you pal.

    1. Sorry to have to edit one of bobby47’s comments. I feel it would be better to give my reasoning here as a way of public explanation.

      Normally as publisher, the regulations surrounding comments mean I am not liable in law as there is a complaints system in place with the time limits in the regulations.

      However during election periods, a different law also applies (section 106 of the Representation of the Peoples Act 1983).

      Joe Anderson is currently a candidate (the Labour Party candidate) for Mayor of Liverpool in 2016.

      Therefore it’s classed a criminal offence for both the publisher and the person (or director or association corporate) leaving the comment if:

      “during an election”

      “or the purpose of affecting the return of any candidate at the election”

      (in this case Joe Anderson in the election of Mayor of Liverpool)

      “makes or publishes any false statement of fact in relation to the candidate’s personal character or conduct”

      unless

      “he can show that he had reasonable grounds for believing, and did believe, that statement to be true.”

      All statements edited out of bobby47’s comment related to the personal character or conduct of Mayor Joe Anderson. As publisher because I don’t have reasonable ground for believing or believe the statements edited out to be true, therefore I would be committing a criminal offence if I allowed them to be published.

      Due to the above, between now and polls closing at 10pm on Thursday 5th May 2016, I will be manually approving all comments submitted before they are published.

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