Request ID: FOI-3426-2324 Date published: 29 January 2024
You asked
On October 24th it was reported that a tube driver was suspended for leading a pro Palestine chant on the tube.
I would like to know what has happened to the driver. Has the investigation concluded and what was the outcome? If applicable I would like a copy of the report produced following the investigation into this driver.
Have any other TFL staff been sanctioned for political messages in the last year. If so how many, what was the sanction and what was the offence?
We answered
Our Ref: FOI-3426-2324
Thank you for your request received on 30 December 2024 asking for information about London Underground train drivers.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold the information you require. You asked:
On October 24th it was reported that a tube driver was suspended for leading a pro Palestine chant on the tube.
I would like to know what has happened to the driver. Has the investigation concluded and what was the outcome? If applicable I would like a copy of the report produced following the investigation into this driver.
We can confirm that, following a thorough internal investigation in accordance with our agreed formal processes, disciplinary action has been taken with regard to the driver who made announcements on the Central line on 21 October last year. The driver has also written to faith groups that we have been engaging with since October to apologise for the announcements and for the impact they had on some customers travelling on the train and in the wider community. It is critically important to everyone at TfL that our network feels, and is, a safe and welcoming place for all Londoners, and we will do all we can to continue to ensure that.
We are not obliged to provide you with the associated report as it is exempt from disclosure under section 40(2) of the FOI Act, and in accordance with TfL’s obligations under Data Protection legislation. This is because disclosure of this personal data would be a breach of the legislation, specifically the first principle 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 which would make the processing ‘fair’.
This exemption to the right of access to information is an absolute exemption and not subject to an assessment of whether the public interest favours use of the exemption.
Have any other TFL staff been sanctioned for political messages in the last year. If so how many, what was the sanction and what was the offence?
Unfortunately, to provide the information you have requested would still exceed the ‘appropriate limit’ of £450 set by the Freedom of Information (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. Under section 12 of the FOI Act we are not obliged to comply with a request if we estimate that the cost of determining whether we hold the information, and then locating and retrieving it, or extracting it from other information, would exceed the appropriate limit. This is calculated at £25 per hour for every hour spent on the activities described, which equates to 18 hours work.
In order to collate this information we would have to manually check all of the cases we have received that have been coded as relating to ‘Disciplinary’ or ‘Other Activity’ as our reporting does not allow to filter the information any further. Since the start of the financial year (April 2023) there are over 2000 such cases open for this period. Please note that there may be other cases that are relevant to your request that have not been recorded in either of these categories. However, just to review the ones within the most likely categories would exceed the appropriate limit as we would need to review each of the individual case files.
To help bring the cost of responding to your request within the £450 limit, you may wish to consider narrowing its scope so that we can more easily locate, retrieve and extract the information you are seeking, bearing in mind the information above. As advised above, this information is not held in a way that the data you have requested can be extracted easily or without the need to review individual case files. As any such requests are likely to exceed the cost limit you may wish to request different information.
Please note that we will not be taking further action until we receive your revised request.
In the meantime, if you have any queries or would like to discuss your request, please do not hesitate to contact me
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Gemma Jacob Senior FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
