Eat Safe food rating for Jaipur Tandoori (FOI)

Request

I would like to request the written inspection report that supports a three star rating for the Jaipur Tandoori, 10 Esplanade, St Helier. 

Response

Eat Safe food ratings are explained on the government website and can be accessed using the following link:

Eat Safe food safety star ratings explained

Eat Safe ratings are intended to provide the public with an indication of an establishment’s food safety management and confirm compliance with Jersey Food Law. Establishments with a rating of three will be fully compliant with the Jersey Food Law but the underlying inspection reports may show areas where improvement is required.

Releasing the underlying reports could potentially allow businesses to pitch against each other depending on the terminology used within the report and the recommendations suggested.

As such, we believe that disclosure of any food inspection reports could potentially prejudice or harm the commercial interests of businesses and that this prejudice outweighs the public interest in favour of disclosure.

The information you have requested is therefore exempt under Article 33 (Commercial Interests) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

Article applied

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).

Internal Review Request

I would like to request a review of your refusal as I don’t believe the reason given is justified and would add that it is standard to publish such reports in the UK: Example:

Food Hygiene inspection report

Internal Review Response

Whilst food safe star ratings are publicly available in Jersey, the background reports are not routinely published.

There is a possibility that publishing such reports could potentially harm the commercial interests of establishments were there to be anything untoward contained within a report. This is especially relevant in Jersey given the size of the Island and close-knit community culture.

We have however considered the UK’s stance, where they do publish information on-line, and how this serves as an incentive for establishments to raise their standards, which is clearly in the public interest.

Given these factors, it has been agreed to release the Inspection report on the grounds that high food safety standards should be encouraged at all establishments and that to improve standards would only serve to support commercial interests.

Food Hygiene Inspection Report 20.10.2020 (Redacted)

Personal Information contained within the report has been redacted in accordance with Article 25 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011

Article 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 2005.

(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[7]; and

(b) its supply to a member of the public would contravene any of the data protection principles, as defined in that Law.[8]

(3) In determining for the purposes of this Article whether the lawfulness principle in Article 8(1)(a) of the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018[9] would be contravened by the disclosure of information, paragraph 5(1) of Schedule 2 to that Law (legitimate interests) is to be read as if sub-paragraph (b) (which disapplies the provision where the controller is a public authority) were omitted.[10]