WDTK refusals due to copyright/re-use regs

Introduction

• This page is intended to capture any refusals by public authorities to send information to WhatDoTheyKnow.com due to copyright or re-use regulation issues.
• The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 Section 50 permits release of copyright material to third parties via FOI without breach of the Copyright Act:

50 Acts done under statutory authority.

(1)Where the doing of a particular act is specifically authorised by an Act of Parliament, whenever passed, then, unless the Act provides otherwise, the doing of that act does not infringe copyright.

Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency

• Refused to send a copy of "14-19 Centre Research Study: educational reform in schools and colleges in England" due to copyright concerns.
• Request: [1]

Brent Borough Council

• The main recent case has been Brent Council. This was resolved thanks to the assistance of the ICO's enforcement team, who wrote to the Chief Executive of the council which appears to have cleared up problems.
• Sample request: [2]

House of Commons

• http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/online_petitions_documents_from
• BBC article
• ICO Decision Notice in favour of releasing the information to WDTK [3]

Bristol City Council

• Request: List of residential properties owned by Bristol City Council
• They said:

In order for me to respond to your request, I will need a private address/ private e mail address to forward the information to.

Unfortunately I am unable to publish this information on the 'whatdotheyknow' website as this will make the information available for commercial re use, which you will be unable to control.

Joint Nature Conservation Committee

• Request: [4]
• Re-requested, and released following ICO intervention [5]

Learning & Skills Council

• Request: [6]
• They relented after involvement by the ICO, and sent the information

South Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust

• Request: [7]
• They said:

Please be advised that we will, however, be unable to supply the information you have requested through the web site service you have used unless they confirm that the response will not be published on their site without our permission as required under the Re-use of Public Sector Information Regulations.

• They have since responded to WhatDoTheyKnow for other requests.

Heriot-Watt University

• Issue with third party copyright, presumably belonging to their external auditors [8]
• They have since responded to WhatDoTheyKnow for other requests.

Preston College

• http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/plans_to_build_a_new_college
• They have since responded to WhatDoTheyKnow for other requests

Cumbria County Council

• One-off issue with copyright Ordinance Survey GIS data - [9]

Southampton University

• They used protected PDFs as a way of making users accept license conditions before viewing the document.
• For details see: http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/printer_credit_purchased_4

Cambridgeshire County Council

• One-off refusal to provide part of the response (mapping info) due to (presumably) Ordnance Survey copyright restrictions [10]
  • When User:bjh21 asked for permission to scan TROs the Council similarly refused permission for parts derived from OS mapping.