FOI 158-2021 / Feb / Illegal Cannabis Factories
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 158-2021
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 17th February 2021 as follows:
Please can you provide a breakdown for the number of cannabis factories (in residential and commercial properties) that have been closed and dismantled by police in each calendar year from 2015 to 2020.
Can you also detail the estimated value of the drugs discovered at each illegal cannabis factory please.
Please accept my sincere apologies for the delay in providing the response to your request and for any inconvenience this may have caused. Please find the Warwickshire Police response set out below.
Response: Please be advised that information requested is not centrally recorded and is not available in a readily retrievable format. There is no specific identifier for cannabis farms/factories and, in order to attempt to provide a response to your request, it would be necessary to review the wider case papers and circumstances associated with each and every offence of ‘production or being concerned in production of a controlled drug – cannabis’ (offence code 92.21). During the stated period there were 399 such offences and, even at a conservative estimate of 10 minutes per offence (minimum), this would equate to in excess of 66 hours of work. Therefore, such searches would exceed the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the ‘appropriate level’ as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004.
In accordance with S12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice in relation to your request.
In accordance with Section 16 of the Act I have a duty to provide advice and assistance; however, due to the volume of information concerned, I am unable to suggest a way to pare down your request into one which could be provided within the fees limit.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is as accurate as possible.
Your attention is drawn to the below which details your right of complaint.
Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write or email the Freedom of Information Unit quoting the reference number above.
Yours sincerely
Freedom of Information Officer
Freedom of Information Unit
Warwickshire Police
PO Box 4
Leek Wootton
Warwickshire
CV35 7QB