Keith Kennaugh v The Information Commissioner & Anor

Facts

The appellant, Keith Kennaugh, made a request to the Cabinet Office on 11 March 2024 under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, via the WhatDoTheyKnow website, for records of the decision by the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. His premise was that, since the Supreme Court had ruled that the referendum was not itself a decision, and the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill had been presented on the basis of "a decision already made", the decision must have been taken either by the Cabinet or by the Prime Minister alone, and must be recorded somewhere. The Cabinet Office first replied that this was not a valid request for recorded information, then refused it under section 12(2) of the Act. On a complaint, the Commissioner issued a decision notice on 3 October 2024 holding that section 12(2) was not available and requiring a fresh response. The Cabinet Office then relied on section 12(1), estimating at least 58 hours of work on the paper records alone. In the decision notice under appeal, issued on 16 January 2025, the Commissioner upheld that reliance, while finding a breach of section 10(1). The appellant appealed to the Tribunal.