To whoever this may concern, This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I would like to request information on the London Transport Museum’s sponsorship please. Detail of sponsorships/partnerships with arms companies • Has the London Transport Museum received any funds or sponsorship from, or formed any partnership with, any company which could be considered a weapons manufacturer? (The list on page 9 of this report provides an overview of the largest of these companies) o If funding was received or partnership agreed, what was the name of the company and the value of the grant, donation or sponsorship, or the nature of the partnership, and the period it covers please? (If it is easier to provide a list of grants, donations, sponsorships and partnerships from all sources, I am happy to receive that.) o If such funding/partnership was accepted, was any risk assessment carried out with regards to partnering with weapons manufacturers, and if so, please may you share any documentation of these discussions? • What corporate events or meetings have weapons manufacturers requested or held at the London Transport Museum? Ethical fundraising policy Does the London Transport Museum have an ethical sponsorship, membership or fundraising policy with regards to arms manufacturers, and if so please could you direct me to it and let me know when it came into force? I would like to request this information from July 2014 to the present please

---

TfL Ref: FOI-0022-2021

Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 3^rd April 2020 asking for information about sponsorship of the London Transport Museum.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.

Specifically you asked:

“Has the London Transport Museum received any funds or sponsorship from, or formed any partnership with, any company which could be considered a weapons manufacturer? (The list on page 9 of this report provides an overview of the largest of these companies)

If funding was received or partnership agreed, what was the name of the company and the value of the grant, donation or sponsorship, or the nature of the partnership, and the period it covers please? (If it is easier to provide a list of grants, donations, sponsorships and partnerships from all sources, I am happy to receive that.)

If such funding/partnership was accepted, was any risk assessment carried out with regards to partnering with weapons manufacturers, and if so, please may you share any documentation of these discussions?

What corporate events or meetings have weapons manufacturers requested or held at the London Transport Museum?

Does the London Transport Museum have an ethical sponsorship, membership or fundraising policy with regards to arms manufacturers, and if so please could you direct me to it and let me know when it came into force?

I would like to request this information from July 2014 to the present please.”

I can confirm that we hold the information you require. Your questions are answered in turn below:

Question 1: Has the London Transport Museum received any funds or sponsorship from, or formed any partnership with, any company which could be considered a weapons manufacturer? (The list on page 9 of this report provides an overview of the largest of these companies)

And;

Question 2: If funding was received or partnership agreed, what was the name of the company and the value of the grant, donation or sponsorship, or the nature of the partnership, and the period it covers please? (If it is easier to provide a list of grants, donations, sponsorships and partnerships from all sources, I am happy to receive that.)

Since July 2014 the London Transport Museum has received Corporate Membership fees from three companies listed in the report attached with your request, as follows:

• Fujitsu Services Limited – London Transport Museum received Corporate Membership fees in in 2017/18; 2018/19; and 2019/20
• Jacobs UK Limited – London Transport Museum received Corporate Membership fees in 2018/19
• Thales Transport and Security Limited – London Transport Museum received Corporate Membership fees in 2013/14; 2014/15; 2015/16; 2016/17; 2017/18; 2018/19; and 2019/20.

All three companies listed above are major suppliers in the transport industry and have / are supporting the delivery of a number of major transport projects across London and the UK, including new signalling, design and construction of stations and key infrastructure.

The value of the fees paid is exempt from disclosure under section 43 of the Freedom of Information Act. This exemption applies where release of information would prejudice the commercial interests of the public authority or any other party. In this instance TfL believes it would damage our own commercial interests to release the information, as to do so would undermine our ability to negotiate such fees in the future. The use of this exemption is “qualified”, meaning that for it to apply we have to judge whether it is in the greater public interest to withhold the information or not. Given that TfL is largely funded via the public purse (in the form of grants and fares) there is a clear public interest in achieving the best possible value from our commercial enterprises, as this reduces the burden on the public purse. While we appreciate the need for transparency and accountability in the operation of our business, this is already achieved to a large extent by the fulfilment of statutory duties such as the publication of Annual Reports and Accounts (see here for the London Transport Museum Annual Reports and Accounts: https://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/about-us/governance). Therefore, in this is instance, we believe that the greater public interests lies in applying the exemption.

Question 3: If such funding/partnership was accepted, was any risk assessment carried out with regards to partnering with weapons manufacturers, and if so, please may you share any documentation of these discussions?

No such assessments were undertaken and we therefore do not hold any documentation. All decisions are aligned with our Sponsorship & Donations policy, a copy of which is attached.

Question 4: What corporate events or meetings have weapons manufacturers requested or held at the London Transport Museum?

• Fujitsu Services Limited has held four corporate events or meetings at London Transport Museum since July 2014.
• Jacobs UK Limited has held three corporate events or meetings at London Transport Museum since July 2014.
• Thales has held 12 corporate events or meetings at London Transport Museum since July 2014.

Question 5: Does the London Transport Museum have an ethical sponsorship, membership or fundraising policy with regards to arms manufacturers, and if so please could you direct me to it and let me know when it came into force?

The Sponsorship & Donations policy 2019 is attached.

If this is not the information you are looking for please do not hesitate to contact me.

On a more general matter, please note that the Government has announced a series of measures to tackle the Coronavirus. It is essential for London, and in particular for all critical workers, that we continue to provide a safe transport network that enables them to make the journeys they need to.

In current circumstances, we are not able to answer FOI requests readily and we ask that you please do not make a request to us at present.

Answering FOI requests will require the use of limited resources and the attention of staff who could be supporting other essential activity. In any event, please note that our response time will be affected by the current situation.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.

Yours sincerely,

David Wells

FOI Case Officer

FOI Case Management Team

General Counsel

Transport for London

Attachments

Back to top

---