We have had a request for clarification about our FOIA request to the Department for Work and Pensions, regarding the DWP-IR Longitudinal Study Ethics Committee.
This seems to be a very promising response to our request, after only 13 working days
Our inline reply to the request for clarification.:
"To: AAA BBB CCC [AAA.BBB.CCC@dwp.gsi.gov.uk]
Subject: Re: Clarification sought on your FOI request about WPLS ethics Committee>AAA BBB CCC wrote:
>XXX,
>We are working towards completion of all elements of your request.
>In order to help us supply what you have asked for, we need to ask
>you for some more detail about your request for all documents
>relating to the establishment of the Ethics Committee which is too
>broad a category for us to supply.>It would help us if you can narrow down your request by identifying
>any particular types of information that you might be interested in,
>so that we could use it to consider any information we might have.>We can offer the following:
>a) The terms of Reference of the Ethics Committee;
>b) Those parts of the minutes of meetings of the Ethics Committee
> which relate to the establishment of the Ethics Committee
>c) Other parts of minutes of the Ethics Committee which would not be
> subject to exemption under the Freedom of Information ActThat looks like a good start.
Hopefully these categories will allow the disclosure and publication of
1) Who the people are who are actually serving on this Ethics Committee, how often they meet etc.
2) How to contact them independently of the DWP contact points e.g.
postal address for correspondence, email, phone etc. for members of the public to raise issues such as what appears to be racial profiling into geographical information systems, without individual informed consent.3) Confidential contact channels for internal whistleblowers amongst the staff of the Department for Work and Pensions or the Inland Revenue regarding any activities or tasks that they have been asked to perform which may be unethical, even if they are strictly within the letter of the law.
4) An idea of whether the 8 REMOVED business cases on the public website were the result of consideration by the Ethics Committee
>I would be grateful if you could confirm if these documents meet >your needs, or suggest any other types of information.
>AAA CCC
>Data Sharing Strategy and Compliance.
>Data Services Unit,
>Information & Analysis Directorate,
>Department for Work & Pensions,
>Level 2, Kings Court, 80 Hanover Way, Sheffield S3 7UF
>Tel: 0114 nnnnnnn
>Fax: 0114 nnnnnnn
>Mob: nnnnn nnnnnnregards"
