Misuse of Drugs Advisory Council meeting minutes (FOI)

Request

Please could you provide the minutes of the meetings of the Misuse of Drugs Advisory Council since the 83rd meeting held in November 2018, specifically those where cannabis was discussed.

Response

The minutes of the following Misuse of Drugs Advisory Council (MDAC) meetings are attached:

 20200611 MDAC Minutes

 20201007 MDAC Minutes

 20201217 MDAC Minutes

 20210323 MDAC Minutes

 20210622 MDAC Minutes

 20210921 MDAC Minutes

Redactions have been made to the minutes to protect the privacy of individuals, ensure that the commercial interests of the Government of Jersey, or others, are not prejudiced and to reduce the impact on the security of the island. Redactions have been colour coded for ease of reference:

Blue - Personal Information of the Chair - Article 25 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011

Yellow - Personal Information of the Members of the Council and others mentioned within the minutes – Article 25 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011

Purple - Commercial Interests – Article 33 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011

Red - Law Enforcement – Article 42 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011

Articles Applied

Article 25- Personal information

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018.

(2) Information is absolutely exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is not the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018; and

(b) its supply to a member of the public would contravene any of the data protection principles, as defined in that Law.

Article 33 - Commercial interests

Information is qualified exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes a trade secret; or

(b) its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of a person (including the scheduled public authority holding the information).

Public Interest Test

Article 33 is a qualified exemption and as such we have conducted a public interest test as required by law. Health and Community Services has assessed whether, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in supplying the information is outweighed by the public interest in not doing so. It is recognised that there is a public interest in providing transparency about the Misuse of Drugs Advisory Council. However, having considered the public interest, Health and Community Services has concluded that the public interest in disclosing this information is outweighed by the public interest in withholding the information, to protect the Government of Jersey's commercial interests.

Article 42 - Law enforcement

Information is qualified exempt information if its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice –

(a) the prevention, detection or investigation of crime, whether in Jersey or elsewhere

Public Interest Test

Article 42 is a qualified exemption and as such we have conducted a public interest test as required by law. Health and Community Services has assessed whether, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in supplying the information is outweighed by the public interest in not doing so. It is recognised that there is a public interest in providing transparency about the work of the Misuse of Drugs Advisory Council. However, having considered the public interest, Health and Community Services has concluded that the public interest in disclosing this information is outweighed by the public interest in withholding the information, in order to prevent potential criminality and maintain security within the island.