Consultation on the introduction of fees and cost limits for Freedom of Information requests

Year on year FOI volumes

Since 2018 (the first year which the system reported figures for cases within all the defined hourly thresholds), requests received have increased at an average rate of 17% per annum. Government received 982 requests in the 2024 calendar year with time taken to resolve requests continuing to rise.

It should also be noted that the data included in this section is only for Government Departments, Statutory Boards and Offices only.

We can also observe that requests are taking longer to resolve:

Costs to Process FOI Requests

The below table outlines the estimated costs to respond to FOI requests, as the system currently stands. An hourly rate of £34 has been used which was calculated from 2016’s Consultation on a Cost Limit for Freedom of Information Requests (opens in a new tab) rate of £25 and allowing for inflation.

To provide an example from the report, in applying the hourly thresholds to 2024’s Cases received, and the hourly rate(s) we can observe.

It should be noted that the time estimates included above are likely to be the minimum amount of time spent responding to FOI requests and the actual amounts of time expended are likely to be much higher. It is also important to recognise that the time expended by teams and staff making enquiries and co-ordinating large requests can have a real and significant impact on officers providing essential and / or front-line services.

It is clear from the data, that the cost to Government is increasing, along with an increasing number of requests, which indicates that the time is right to revisit consulting on possible policy options to address the issue and provide better value for money for the taxpayer.

Proportion of FOI Requests which has information supplied or provided via the application of a Section 20 (Information Accessible by other means) exemption

The following data has been sourced from the below Public Authorities during the time period of 28 August 2023 to 28 August 2024.

Of the total requests received in the period, 78 (12%) were clarified with the applicant.

Of those requests where clarification was raised, 44 lapsed due to information not being provided.

42 (7%) warranted a Section 20 (Information Accessible by other means) exemption.

There are only 7 total requests (1%) where both a clarification request was raised with the applicant, and a Section 20 exemption was applied to the request in some way (either wholly or partly).

Number of individuals which submit FOI requests to Departments, Boards & Offices annually

For the purpose of illustrating this at a broader level, requesters have been grouped together based on the number of requests submitted as follows.

Based on the above, we can observe that of the 300 requesters who submitted a request in the period, 22 of those (Groups C and D), which account for 7% of requesters, were responsible for 43% of the total requests received in the period.

Of the 87 requesters who submitted more than 1 request, 67 of those (77%) submitted a request to more than one public authority.

We can further observe that the top three requesters of Group D submitted 98 requests in their own capacity, accounting for 15% of the total requests received. These individuals are consistent in that they submitted multiple requests to multiple public authorities in the period, and had a particular focus on a single public authority.

It is clear from the data that there is a significant impact being placed upon Government’s resources from a disproportionate number of requesters. This highlights the need to address this issue and bring forward policy options to reduce the administrative burden that is being placed upon Public Authorities.