Part I
(4) The Secretary of State may by regulations provide that subsections (1) and (2) are to have effect as if any reference to the twentieth working day following the date of receipt were a reference to such other day, not later than the sixtieth working day following the date of receipt, as may be specified in, or determined in accordance with, the regulations.
(5) Regulations under subsection (4) may—
- (a) prescribe different days in relation to different cases, and
- (b) confer a discretion on the Commissioner.
(6) In this section—
- “the date of receipt” means-
- (a) the day on which the public authority receives the request for information, or
- (b) if later, the day on which it receives the information referred to in section 1(3);
- “working day” means any day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a day which is a bank holiday under the 1971 c. 80.Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in any part of the United Kingdom.
Means by which communication to be made. 11.—(1) Where, on making his request for information, the applicant expresses a preference for communication by any one or more of the following means, namely—
- (a) the provision to the applicant of a copy of the information in permanent form or in another form acceptable to the applicant,
- (b) the provision to the applicant of a reasonable opportunity to inspect a record containing the information, and
- (c) the provision to the applicant of a digest or summary of the information in permanent form or in another form acceptable to the applicant,
the public authority shall so far as reasonably practicable give effect to that preference.
(2) In determining for the purposes of this section whether it is reasonably practicable to communicate information by particular means, the public authority may have regard to all the circumstances, including the cost of doing so.
(3) Where the public authority determines that it is not reasonably practicable to comply with any preference expressed by the applicant in making his request, the authority shall notify the applicant of the reasons for its determination.
(4) Subject to subsection (1), a public authority may comply with a request by communicating information by any means which are reasonable in the circumstances.
Exemption where cost of compliance exceeds appropriate limit. 12.—(1) Section 1(1) does not oblige a public authority to comply with a request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the appropriate limit.
