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In confidenceChair: Storm Westmaas
Principal Legal Adviser, the Standards Board for England
Speakers: Bernadette LiveseyChief Law and Administration Officer,
Calderdale Council
Lynne ShackleyData Protection Practice Manager, ICO
In confidence
Bernadette Livesey
Chief Law and Administration Officer, Calderdale Council
Paragraph 4
You must not:
a) disclose confidential information
Confidential information = information given in
confidence, or information which you ought to know is
Confidential.
Exceptions
(i) consent;
(ii) law requires;
(iii) professional advice with undertaking; or
The public interest defence
(iv) the disclosure is:
reasonable
in the public interest
in good faith
in accord with procedure
Some key concepts
What is confidentiality?
Who has an expectation of confidence?
Who has an expectation of privacy?
Who? Standards committee and sub committees?
Members?
Members of the public?
Chief executive and senior managers?
Monitoring officer?
Deputy monitoring officer?
Investigating staff /external contractor?
Staff?
Whistleblowers?
Other agencies?
How far does this go ?
How far does this confidentiality extend?
statutory protection
Freedom of Information issues
litigation issues
legal/profession privilege
effective conduct of public affairs
Let’s do this
Worked example – person makes a complaint that
AB allegedly told someone else something
confidential.
What does the Code of Conduct say?
What does the law say?
Any criminal activities?
Powers/duties of monitoring officer.
What does in confidence mean?
So – where does the complaint go?
Who gets to know about the complaint?
- political considerations
- local knowledge
- information made available
Confidential information?
Who prepares the summary?
To what standard?
Duties and rights of Assessment Sub Committee and Review Sub Committee.
What does the Decision Notice say?
Expectations of confidence.
Tricky issues
“I thought you ought to know ....”
“Little brown envelopes”
“Everybody knows that Councillor X does ....”
“I don’t want to go on record”
“If I tell you this – who gets to know?”
Statutory information Information regime
Access to information regime
- When does this apply?
Data Protection
- Information from Information Commission
- www.ico.gov.uk
Freedom of Information
Environmental Information Regulations
How do these affect you?
Other information
Case law on confidence
Catherine Zeta Jones
Max Mosley
Relationship with the police
Cases on this – Woolgar and 1999 case of A Police Authority In The Midlands and A County Council In The Midlands, Ex Parte L M
In confidence
Lynne Shackley
Data Protection Practice Manager, ICO
Purpose
To explain how to identify and safeguard confidential information.
To offer case studies to illustrate the consequences of poor information security.
To offer an opportunity for questions and discussion.
Who we are and what we do
regulator for the DPA and FOIA
guidance and advice
assessments
investigations
prosecutions
Isn’t everything a secret?
What is the information about?
Why was it offered to me?
What were the circumstances?
What damage would be caused by disclosure?
The need for clear policies and procedures.
Conflicting duties
Disclosures required by law.
Balancing the right of the public to know against the individual’s right to privacy.
DP or FOI.
Information security breaches
Central government breaches.
The immediate effects and reactions.
The long term effects.
Professional views.
How the public see this.
What this means for your every day work.
Breach statistics
January to March 61
April to date 41
Public 55
Private 47
New powers
Requirement for collaboration on Codes of Practice.
Power to fine organisations for serious breaches of
the Data Protection Act.
‘Spot checks’ on public sector bodies.
Potential for custodial penalties to be introduced for
the illegal trade in personal information if practices
persists.
Case studies
Local authorities and planning: Both FOI and DP.
Subject access requests: Complex confidentiality.
In confidenceChair: Storm Westmaas
Principal Legal Adviser, the Standards Board for England
Speakers: Bernadette LiveseyChief Law and Administration Officer,
Calderdale Council
Lynne ShackleyData Protection Practice Manager, ICO
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