Dear Her Majesty's Treasury,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Her Majesty's Treasury's handling of my FOI request 'Training Materials for COINS'.

For the training materials given, the screenshots of COINS have been redacted.

You seek to rely on the exemption in section 43(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 however I consider that this exemption is not engaged as the screenshots are not trade secrets. The term 'trade secret' is not defined in the Act however the Information Commissioner has considered the meaning of the term (FS50156040).

In considering this question the Commissioner has noted that in Lansing Linde Ltd v Kerr [1991], the court defined a trade secret as "...information which, if disclosed to a competitor, would be liable to cause real (or significant) harm to the owner of the secret. I would add first, that it must be information used in a trade or business, and secondly that the owner must limit the dissemination of it or at least not encourage or permit widespread publication."

Firstly, the screenshots from the COINS database are not used as part of a trade but rather for the purpose of training public sector officials to use software as part of the administration of public finances.

Secondly, it is unlikely that the disclosure of screenshots would cause real or significant harm to the owners of the screenshots or even the owners of the software. A competitor would gain little advantage from screenshots as it would be unlikely that the system could be replicated without information about coding and data base structure that could not be gained from screenshots alone.

Thirdly, the fact that the COINS system is bespoke which means that it is unlikely to be suitable for other customers in its present form which further mitigates against any possibility of harm caused by the publication of these screenshots. It is also common in the software industry to provide screenshots in marketing materials and tender presentations which further suggests these should not be regarded as trade secrets.

Even if the exemption was engaged the screenshots should nevertheless be disclosed as there is a very strong public interest in the transparency of public finances and the systems and controls used to ensure that public funds are used effectively and in accordance with the law. There is a public interest in enabling members of the public to see that public officials are receiving appropriate training in the use of software and also that the software is fit for purpose.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/tr...

Yours faithfully,

Lisa Evans