Improving Performance Consultancy reports (FOI)

Request

A

Following on from previous FOI requests related to Improving Performance Consultancy by HCS, I note the Public Finances Manual states 'All reports from consultants and other third parties that are not considered exempt under Freedom of Information legislation must be published on www.gov.je as soon as is practical after their receipt.'

Therefore, as per the Public Finances Law could you please provide copies of all the reports produced by Improving Performance Consultancy Ltd?

B

Could you also please provide the Business Case and/or exemption permitting further spending with Improving Performance Consultancy Ltd since the FOI request in 2019 where it was suggested that the initial documentation regarding the engagement could not be found, and that the use of the services of Improving Performance Consultancy Ltd were being reviewed? Could you please specify who authorised the ongoing expenditure?

C

Could you also please provide a copy of the outcome of that review and any other evaluation made of the outcome(s) of this engagement?

Response

A

A previous FOI response disclosed the following redacted reports:

• Dermatology Report
• SoJ MHASC Care Group Workforce Plan
• SoJ Oncology Service Report
  

Kim Hodgson Interview panels and reports FOI (gov.je)

As these reports are already published and accessible by other means, Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

To redact and prepare the reports not previously disclosed, as requested, would take a considerable amount of time as an Officer would need to review the reports, consider the application of exemptions and  process the reports. Therefore, Article 16 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied as to respond to this request would take longer than the timescale as prescribed in the regulations.

B

There was no requirement to develop a business case or request an exemption in order to continue to access the service provided by Improving Performance Consultancy. Therefore, Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies as this information is not held. 

C 

Reviews were carried out informally and in person, and as such, information has not been recorded. As such, Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied as the information is not held. 

Articles Applied 

Article 3 - Meaning of "information held by a public authority"

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a) it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b) it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 16 - A scheduled public authority may refuse to supply information if cost excessive

(1) A scheduled public authority that has been requested to supply information may refuse to supply the information if it estimates that the cost of doing so would exceed an amount determined in the manner prescribed by Regulations.

(2) Despite paragraph (1), a scheduled public authority may still supply the information requested on payment to it of a fee determined by the authority in the manner prescribed by Regulations for the purposes of this Article.

(3) Regulations may provide that, in such circumstances as the Regulations prescribe, if two or more requests for information are made to a scheduled public authority –

(a) by one person; or

(b) by different persons who appear to the scheduled public authority to be acting in concert or in pursuance of a campaign, the estimated cost of complying with any of the requests is to be taken to be the estimated total cost of complying with all of them.

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.