MDPGA Secretariat
MDPGA Headquarters, Building 1070, Room 122
Wethersfield, Braintree, Essex
CM7 4AZ
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Website: / 01371 854080
Mr Paul Stephens
What-do-they-know
/ Ref: AIT:22-11-2010-164547-004
RFI:104/10
Date:7 January 2011
DearMrStephens
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION RETHE RUNNING COSTS OF RADIO COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT
I refer to our letter dated 17 December 2010 when we advised you that we would be conducting a Public Interest Test to ascertain whether we could provide the information on the running costs of radio communication equipment which you requested in your e-mail of 23 November 2010 as shown below.
Request
Dear Ministry of Defence Police,
Would you please provide information concerning the following;
1. The total running cost of 1 TETRA HANDHELD TERMINAL for a period
of 1 year.
2. The total running cost of ALL TETRA TERMINALS this includes
HANDHELDS, MOBILE, BASE UNITS ETC for a period of 1 year.
3. The total running cost of the old style ANALOGUE RADIO
HANDHELD TERMINAL for a period of one year prior to the
introduction of the digital network.
4. The total running cost of ALL ANALOGUE RADIO TERMINALS this
includes HANDHELDS, MOBILE, BASE UNITS, REPEATERS ETC for a period
of 1 year, this is prior to the introduction of the digital
network.
5. The total running cost of ALL TETRA TERMINALS this includes
HANDHELDS, MOBILE, BASE UNITS ETC since your force changed to the
AIRWAVE/TETRA network. This is not to include the initial purchase
of terminals but is to include any other costs incurred in gaining
access to network.
6. The total running cost of of ALL ANALOGUE RADIO TERMINALS this
includes HANDHELDS, MOBILE, BASE UNITS, REPEATERS ETC for a period
matching the timescale of Q5. i.e. if your force has only been on
the AIRWAVE/TETRA network for 2 years and 4mths please only give
the running costs for 2 years and 4 mths of the analogue system.
7. The total amount of TETRA TERMINALS that have been reported as
being lost QTY & £.
8. The total amount of ANALOGUE RADIOS that were reported as being
lost QTY & £ for a period matching the timescale of Q7.
We have now completed the Public Interest Test and I can confirm that we hold the information requested except for question 8 where no historical information is held centrally.
In order to assess your request fairly we split it into two sections:
a) represents historical information regarding analogue equipment which is no longer in use, ie questions 3, 4, 6 and the quantity element of question 7; and
b) represents equipment currently in use by the Ministry of Defence Police, ie questions 1, 2, 5 and the cost element of question 7.
We do not hold any information on question 8 as mentioned previously.
After full consideration we have concluded that the information at section a) can be made available to you and is shown in the table at Annex A. However, section b) falls within the scope of FOIA Exemption Section 43(2) which considers the impact of commercial interests.
Exemption Section 43(2)
We have concluded that disclosure of information relating to contractual arrangements between the Ministry of Defence Police & Guarding Agency (MDPGA) and Communication Service Providers (CSP)could have the effect of placing the CSPsat a commercial disadvantage against rival providers as this information has the potential to compromise their future business. The MDPGA also has a duty to respect the commercial confidence of suppliers.
Given that Exemption Section 43 is a qualified exemption it is necessary to consider all the public interest argumentsrelevant to this case. However, this exemption is class-based, and as such there is no requirement on behalf of the public authority to prove that the CSPs’ commercial interests may be at risk through disclosure of information. Having carefully considered all relevant aspects of this case, including those of openness and accountability, we conclude that the public interest in disclosing the information is not greater than the public interest in maintaining the exemption. Consequently, the information will not be disclosed.
I hope you find this reply helpful, but if you are unhappy with this responseor wish to complain about any aspect of the handling of your request, then you should contact the undersigned in the first instance. Should you still be dissatisfied then you may apply for an internal review by contacting the Head of Corporate Information, 6th Floor, MOD Main Building, Whitehall, London SW1A 2HB,
Please note that any request for an internal review must be made within 40 working days of the date on which the attempt to reach informal resolution has come to an end.
If you remain unhappy following an internal review, you may take your complaint to the Information Commissioner under the provisions of Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act. Please note that the Information Commissioner will not investigate the case until the MOD internal review process has been completed. Further details of the role and powers of the Information Commissioner can be found on the Commissioner’s website at
Yours sincerely
Margaret Goody