Citizens Panel and Care Memorial (FOI)

Request

A

How many on the Public Citizens Panel 17 from my understanding were abuse victims from local childcare homes?

B

How many of these were for or against a Memorial, information going round states only three supported the idea of a memorial?

C

How much of the £200,000 of the money set aside for the memorial, will the artist whose design is picked get?

Response

A

Releasing this information would breach the privacy of individuals involved in the Citizens Panel process, therefore Article 25 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) 2011 Law has been applied.

B

In 2017, an Engagement Brief was developed to describe the Government of Jersey’s commissioning requirements ahead of an independent supplier being appointed to design and deliver the Citizens Panel process in 2018.

Engagement Brief – Design and Delivery of a Citizens’ Panel

As required, a deliberative process was followed by the Citizens Panel in developing its recommendation for the four-part legacy project, which was agreed by consensus. This process is described in the following document:

The Jersey Citizens Panel 2018 Final Report

“A diverse panel of 14 Jersey residents including survivors and members of the wider public worked hard over five days to share experiences and opinions, to challenge each other and finally reach consensus and agree the wording of a set of recommendations.” (p.3)

“In the last two sessions (June 9th and 10th) panel members finalised their recommendations. The outputs from small group discussions were used to produce several versions of the criteria and project ideas. These versions were then presented to the whole group. Lengthy large group and small group discussions culminated (on the final day) in an agreed set of recommendations.” (p.10)

As some of the information requested is already in the public domain, Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) 2011 Law has been applied.

C

The Government of Jersey does not hold this information. A preferred supplier for the memorial has not been identified and no contracts have been entered into. Each shortlisted design would have a unique profile of costs and fees. Article 10 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) 2011 Law has therefore been applied.

Articles applied

10 Obligation of scheduled public authority to confirm or deny holding information

(1) Subject to paragraph (2), if –

(a) a person makes a request for information to a scheduled public authority; and

(b) the authority does not hold the information,

it must inform the applicant accordingly.

(2) If a person makes a request for information to a scheduled public authority and –

(a) the information is absolutely exempt information or qualified exempt information; or

(b) if the authority does not hold the information, the information would be absolutely exempt information or qualified exempt information if it had held it,

the authority may refuse to inform the applicant whether or not it holds the information if it is satisfied that, in all the circumstances of the case, it is in the public interest to do so.

(3) If a scheduled public authority so refuses –

(a) it shall be taken for the purpose of this Law to have refused to supply the information requested on the ground that it is absolutely exempt information; and

(b) it need not inform the applicant of the specific ground upon which it is refusing the request or, if the authority does not hold the information, the specific ground upon which it would have refused the request had it held the information.

Article 23 Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.

Article 25 Personal information

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018.

(2) Information is absolutely exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is not the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018; and

(b) its supply to a member of the public would contravene any of the data protection principles, as defined in that Law.

(3) In determining for the purposes of this Article whether the lawfulness principle in Article 8(1)(a) of the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018 would be contravened by the disclosure of information, paragraph 5(1) of Schedule 2 to that Law (legitimate interests) is to be read as if sub-paragraph (b) (which disapplies the provision where the controller is a public authority) were omitted