TfL Ref: FOI-0526-1718

Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 31 May 2017 asking for information about correspondence between the named individuals and Uber in relation to their four month licence.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require.

Please see the information you have requested attached. Please note that in accordance with TfL’s obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) some personal data has been removed, 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’.

However, in accordance with the FOI Act, we are not obliged to supply some information requested, including the letters referred to in the attached emails, as it is subject to a statutory exemption to the right of access to information under section 30(2)(iii) as the information is held in accordance with our responsibility for regulating the private hire trade in London. This information contains details which otherwise wouldn’t have been made available to TfL and the exemption applies to protect our ability to clarify and confirm details on specific issues.

This benefits the public as it enables greater oversight of private hire operators and better scrutiny of services by the regulator and our benefit because proactive discussion avoids costly enforcement activity, delayed access to information and increased bureaucracy.

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 that there is significant public interest in this matter, however we feel the balance of the public interest supports the exemption in order to enable the effective and timely sharing of information between ourselves and the taxi and private hire trade.

Lastly, some of the information would also be exempt under section 41 of the FOI Act on the grounds that it was provided to us in confidence. Since section 41 is an absolute exemption, we have not gone on to consider the balance of the public interest in respect of this exemption.

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.

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

Lee Hill

Senior FOI Case Officer

FOI Case Management Team

General Counsel

Transport for London