FOI 632-2023 / June 2023 / Sodium nitrate
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: FOI-632-2023
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 30th June 2023 as follows:
The National Crime Agency (NCA) has distributed an Interpol list to all forces containing a list of names of customers of ***.
*** was a seller of sodium nitrite and was based in ***. Sodium nitrite was being used by suicidal people to end their lives,
I would like to know:
- How many names were provided to your force?
- How many of those people were subsequently found to have died?
To be clear, I only want two numbers - one number in relation to the amount of names, the other number in relation to the amount of deceased. I want no other details.
Please find the Warwickshire Police response set out below.
Response: Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) places two duties on public authorities, unless exemptions apply. The first duty at s1(1)(a) is to confirm or deny whether the information specified in a request is held. The second duty at s1(1)(b) is to disclose information that has been confirmed as being held.
Warwickshire Police can neither confirm nor deny that it holds the information requested as the duty in s1(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 does not apply, by virtue of the following exemptions:
Section 23(5) Information supplied by, or concerning, certain Security Bodies
Section 23 is a class based absolute exemption and there is no requirement to consider the public interest in this case.
Confirming or denying the existence of whether any other information is held would contravene the constrictions laid out within Section 23 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in that this stipulates a generic bar on disclosure of any information applied by, or concerning, certain Security Bodies.
Section 40(5) Personal information
Section 40 is an absolute exemption and does not require me to articulate the harm in neither confirming nor denying whether information is held, nor does it require a public interest test to be carried out.
Please be advised that any information released as a result of a Freedom of Information request is, in effect, being released into the public domain. Therefore, it could subsequently be published or would have to be made available to any member of the public if it were requested.
The decision to issue a ‘neither confirm nor deny’ response is not affected by whether Warwickshire Police do or do not hold the information, but relates to the consequences of confirming or denying the information is held. The decision to neither confirm nor deny is separate from a decision not to disclose information and needs to be taken entirely on its own merits.
Any information that relates to an individual, or from which an individual could be identified, constitutes personal data and to release information that constitutes personal data into the public domain contravenes the Data Protection Act 2018, in particular Article 5(1) of the GDPR.
In cases where confirming or denying that Warwickshire Police do or do not hold information would, of itself, provide information about individuals, including the fact such information may or may not be held, then the exemption applied is Section 40(5).
In accordance with the Act, this letter represents a Refusal Notice for this particular request. No inference can be taken from this refusal that any information is or is not held.
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