Freedom of Information requests from "Mickey Mouse" or "Mrs Sue D Nym" will not be accepted by the information commissioner, new guidance says. However the default position of an FE or HE institution should be to accept the name provided by the applicant unless there is good reason to inquire further about the applicant's name. The commissioner's office urges institutions to "apply common sense" and remember that one of the principles of the FOI Act is that the identity of the person requesting information should not be taken into account. Further details of this news item can be found on the BBC website at - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7826824.stm and the guidance itself can be accessed on the Information Commissioner's website at - http://www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/library/freedom_of_information/
detailed_specialist_guides/name_of_applicant_fop083_v1.pdf.
(21/01/09)