Witness statements
Request
In the court proceedings issued against the Gambling Commission in 2022, John Tanner, Executive Director of the Commission and Senior Responsible Officer for delivery of the competition for the award of the Fourth Licence, provided three witness statements:
- a first statement dated 14 April 2022;
- a second statement dated 25 April 2022; and
- a third statement dated 6 May 2022.
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, please provide me with copies of all three witness statements - documents provided by a public official in open court for a case that has since been discontinued.
Response
Thank you for your request which has been processed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
In your email you have requested the three witness statements, provided by John Tanner, Executive Director of the Commission and Senior Responsible Officer for delivery of the competition for the award of the Fourth Licence, in the court proceedings issued against the Gambling Commission in 2022. Specifically:
- a first statement dated 14 April 2022;
- a second statement dated 25 April 2022; and
- a third statement dated 6 May 2022.
I can confirm that information falling within the scope of your request is held by the Gambling Commission. However, this information was prepared solely for the purposes of litigation between International Game Technology (IGT) and the Gambling Commission regarding the dispute over the National Lottery’s next 10-year licence. As such the entirety of the information you have requested is exempt under section 32 of the FOIA.
Court records – Section 32
Section 32(2) Information held by a public authority is exempt information if it is held only by virtue of being contained in—
a. any document placed in the custody of a person conducting an inquiry or arbitration, for the purposes of the inquiry or arbitration
This is an absolute exemption and therefore does not require public authorities to carry out a public interest test when considering disclosure.
This exemption category is intended to allow the courts to maintain judicial control over access to information it holds in relation to court proceedings unless and until the relevant documents become historical records. This includes giving courts control over what information can be disclosed without prejudicing any legal proceedings or infringing any person’s legal rights.
Review of the decision
If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your Freedom of Information request you are entitled to an internal review of our decision. You should write to FOI Team, Gambling Commission, 4th floor, Victoria Square House, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B2 4BP or by reply to this email.
Please note, internal review requests should be made within 40 working days of the initial response. Requests made outside this timeframe will not be processed.
If you are not content with the outcome of our review, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have already exhausted the review procedure provided by the Gambling Commission.
The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office (opens in a new tab), Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Information Management Team
Gambling Commission
Victoria Square House
Victoria Square
Birmingham B2 4BP