Keith Kennaugh v The Information Commissioner: [2026] UKUT 123 (AAC)
Upper Tribunal Administrative Appeals Chamber decision by Judge Markus on 13 March 2026.
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Judicial Summary
The public authority had not responded to a request for information, relying on section 17(6) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it claimed that the request was vexatious.
The Upper Tribunal reviews the case law as to the character of section 17 that makes it clear that section 17 is a procedural provision. However, section 17(6) did not dispense with the authority’s obligations under section 1 unless the request was vexatious and so the Information Commissioner and, on appeal, the First-tier Tribunal was required to address that substantive question.
In the present case the First-tier Tribunal had not erred in law in deciding that the request was vexatious and that the authority had been entitled to rely on section 17(6).