Key Facts
- •Mr. Montague, a journalist, requested information from the Department for Business and Trade (formerly Department for International Trade) about trade working groups established before the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
- •The Department refused disclosure, citing sections 27 (prejudice to international relations) and 35 (government policy formulation) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
- •The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) allowed aggregation of public interests under multiple exemptions, upholding the Department's refusal.
- •The Upper Tribunal (UT) overturned the FTT's decision, holding that FOIA doesn't permit aggregating public interests under different exemptions; each must be weighed separately.
Legal Principles
Interpretation of FOIA should be liberal to promote openness and transparency, but exemptions must be given appropriate weight.
Lord Hope in Common Services Agency v Scottish Information Commissioner [2008] UKHL 47
FOIA creates a prima facie right to disclosure, subject to exemptions and a balancing of public interests.
Lord Sumption in Kennedy v Information Commissioner [2014] UKSC 455
Section 2(2)(b) of FOIA requires weighing the public interest in maintaining the exemption against the public interest in disclosure.
Court of Appeal in this case
The term 'exemption' in section 2(2)(b) refers to the exempt status of information, not a specific provision of Part II.
Court of Appeal in this case
Section 6(c) of the Interpretation Act 1978 (singular includes plural) applies unless a contrary intention is evident in the statute.
Court of Appeal in this case
Outcomes
The Court of Appeal allowed the Department's appeal.
Section 2(2)(b) of FOIA permits aggregation of public interests under multiple exemptions when determining whether the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure.
The Upper Tribunal's interpretation was overturned.
The UT incorrectly interpreted 'exemption' as synonymous with 'provision' and failed to consider the combined public interest in maintaining the exemption from disclosure.