New Havre des Pas Lido lease

​Request 821014265

Would you kindly send details of the new lease at the Lido Havre des Pas specifically details of who is responsible for and payment of eg lifeguards, cleaning of steps, maintenance of outside of building, etc

Response

The Havre des Pas lease showing the requested information is attached. 

Information regarding the cleaning, repair and maintenance schedules are exempt under Article 33(b) Commercial Interests of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 as these schedules are considered commercially sensitive.

Article 33 is a qualified exemption; therefore, a public interest test has been applied and is shown at the end of this response.

Personal information within the document has been redacted in accordance with Article 25 (Personal Information) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

Articles applied

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.

Article 33 - Commercial interests

Information is qualified exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes a trade secret; or

(b) its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of a person (including the scheduled public authority holding the information).

Prejudice and Public Interest tests (33(b))

Public interest test

In applying this article, the following considerations were considered.

Public interest considerations favouring disclosure

There is a general public interest in promoting transparency and accountability in the use and management of public assets. Disclosure of lease provisions relating to services, repair, and maintenance would:

• Enhance public understanding of how the Scheduled Public Authority (SPA) manage contractual obligations and property assets

• Promote accountability for expenditure associated with maintenance and service provision

• Allow scrutiny of whether value for money is being achieved in lease agreements

• Support openness in decision-making and contractual arrangements involving public resources

Public interest considerations favouring withholding the information

Disclosure of the withheld lease provisions would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of both the SPA and the counterparty. In particular:

• The information reveals commercially sensitive terms, including allocation of responsibility for repair and maintenance

• Disclosure could undermine the negotiating position of the public authority in future lease or property-related negotiations by revealing standard terms, thresholds, or risk allocation strategies

• It may prejudice the commercial interests of the lessor or service providers, whose contractual arrangements and pricing structures could be exposed to competitors

• There is a risk that third parties would be less willing to enter into negotiations with the SPA if sensitive contractual terms are routinely disclosed

• The cumulative effect of disclosure could distort the market by giving undue advantage to other parties in comparable negotiations

Assessment of prejudice

The likelihood of prejudice is considered real and significant, rather than remote or hypothetical. Lease agreements are inherently commercial in nature, and the specific allocation of maintenance and service obligations forms a key part of their negotiated value. Disclosure would provide insight into commercially sensitive positions that could be exploited in future dealings.

Balance of the public interest

While there is a strong public interest in transparency and accountability, this must be balanced against the need to protect the ability of the SPA to operate effectively in a commercial environment.

In this case, the public interest in disclosure is outweighed by the public interest in maintaining the exemption, as:

• Effective management of public assets depends on the SPA’s ability to negotiate contracts without disadvantage

• Protecting commercially sensitive information helps ensure best value for public funds in the long term

• Some transparency may already be achieved through disclosure of non-sensitive or summary information, reducing the need to release detailed contractual terms

The SPA has concluded that, on balance, the public interest favours withholding the information under Article 33(b), as disclosure would be likely to prejudice commercial interests in a meaningful and non-trivial way​