Simon Dally v The Information Commissioner

Facts

The appellant, Simon Dally, had corresponded with Knowsley Council about stray dogs kennelled at Merseyside Dogs Home, which he believed required a licence to board dogs under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018. The Council maintained that Merseyside Dogs Home operated as a charitable rehoming and reception centre, so no licence was needed, adding in an email of 20 February 2019 that it had clarified the position with DEFRA "despite our previous legal advice on this matter". Receiving no answer to his follow-up, the appellant made a request on 11 September 2019 for the DEFRA correspondence and, in a second item, for details of the previous legal advice. The Council disclosed material responsive to the first item but withheld the legal advice under section 42(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, upholding that position on internal review. The Information Commissioner's decision notice of 22 July 2020 found the exemption engaged and the public interest in favour of maintaining it. The appellant appealed. The First-tier Tribunal dismissed the appeal on 15 February 2021, but that decision was set aside by the Upper Tribunal on 12 June 2024 and remitted for determination by a differently constituted panel, which decided the appeal on the papers.