Communications Directorate staffing (FOI)

Request

A

What is the number of people working in the Government of Jersey communications department - including the press office - in March 2023.

B

How much these staff members are paid annually?

Response 

A

In March 2023, there were 31 people working solely as part of the Communications Directorate, including four people in the Press Office.

B

The Government of Jersey does not comment on individual contractual matters as this is personal information and would breach the privacy of the individuals concerned. Article 25 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has therefore been applied.

However, details of the overall staffing (and other related costs) spend for the Communications Directorate are publicly available on www.gov.je in response to a previous Freedom of Information request, which can be accessed via the link below. Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied. 

Communications Directorate Staffing (FOI)

The spend for 2022 is due to be published in the States of Jersey Annual Report and Accounts for 2022 shortly, therefore Article 36 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied to this information.  

Articles applied 

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.

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 2005; and

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

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 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.

Article 36 - Information intended for future publication

(1) Information is qualified exempt information if, at the time when the request for the

information is made, the information is being held by a public authority with a view to its

being published within 12 weeks of the date of the request.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground

must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant –

(a) of the date when the information will be published;

(b) of the manner in which it will be published; and

(c) by whom it will be published.

(3) In this Article, “published” means published –

(a) by a public authority; or

(b) by any other person.

Public Interest Test 

Article 36 is a qualified exemption, which means that a public interest test has to be undertaken to examine the circumstances of the case and decide whether, on balance, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.  

Public interest considerations favouring disclosure  

• disclosure of the information would support transparency and promote accountability to the general public.

Public interest considerations favouring withholding the information

• It is intended to publish the Annual Report and Accounts on www.gov.je within 12 weeks of the receipt of this request. Publishing the information in such close proximity to the final version could potentially lead to confusion.