Our ref: FOI-0383/4-1718/GH

Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 19 May 2017 asking for all the London Underground Company Council minutes, Trains Functional Council minutes and Trains Health and Safety Council minutes from 2009.

Your request has been considered under the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold the information you require.

Please find attached a zip file containing all the requested meeting minutes from 2009.

Please note that in accordance with the FOI Act, some of the information in the minutes has been redacted as it is subject to a statutory exemption to the right of access to information under Section 38(1)(b) of the Act, as disclosure of this information could adversely affect the safety and security of TfL employees and members of the general public.

Whilst we make no suggestion that you would use this information for anything other than you own personal interest, disclosure of this information to you has to be regarded as a disclosure to ‘the public at large’. This information could potentially be obtained and utilised by individuals who may wish to use this information to cause disruption or harm to the London Underground network. The London Underground system is an attractive terrorist target for several reasons including, its importance to London and the knock on effect to the nation’s economy if it is disrupted, the publicity gained from attacking an iconic transport system and the attractiveness of the system for a mass casualty attack due to its open, mass transport nature. It is also part of the nation’s critical infrastructure by virtue of its central importance to the functioning of London and its economy.

Disclosure of information could compromise security and safety preparedness on London Underground’s network and would place members of the public and TfL staff at risk by highlighting areas on the network which could be susceptible to being targeted.

The use of this exemption is subject to an assessment of the public interest in relation to the disclosure of the information concerned. We recognise the need for openness and transparency by public authorities, but in this instance the public interest in applying the exemption, in order to minimise risks to operational resilience, safe operation of the London Underground network, the welfare of staff and members of the general public, outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

Additionally, in accordance with TfL’s obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), where individual members of staff have been discussed, their names have been redacted as required by section 40(2) of the FOI Act. This is because disclosure of this personal data would be a breach of the DPA, specifically the first principle of the DPA which requires all processing of personal data to be fair and lawful. It would not be fair to disclose this personal information when the individuals have no expectation it would be disclosed and TfL has not satisfied one of the conditions of Schedule 2 of the Data Protection Act which would make the processing ‘fair’.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for some reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.

If you are not satisfied with this response please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Graham Hurt

FOI Case Officer

FOI Case Management Team

General Counsel

Transport for London