North Lanarkshire Update

Here's another FoI request I've submitted to North Lanarkshire Council requesting further details about the 'missing' Appendix 5 from a crucial report to the Council's Corporate Management Team in August 2005.

Now I don't really understand how, in this day and age, such an important document can mysteriously disappear from the Council's file which surely cannot rely solely on paper files and must be 'backed up' somewhere within a security conscious computer-based IT system.

If you ask me, North Lanarkshire Council, Scotland's fourth largest council, is in danger of becoming a laughing stack over the issue and if the investigation into the document's sudden disappearance suggests that this was done deliberately, maybe it is time to call in Police Scotland. 

15 December 2014

Gavin Whitefield

Chief Executive

North Lanarkshire Council

BY E-MAIL TO: whitefieldg@northlan.gov.uk

Dear Mr Whitefield

FOISA Request 

I would like to make the following request under the Freedom of Information Scotland Act 2002.

1 Please confirm the identity of the Council official responsible for conducting the investigation into the mysterious disappearance of Appendix 5 from the report to the Council's Corporate Management Team dated August 2005?

2 Please confirm which Council officer was responsible for writing the original CMT report and with whom?

3 Please confirm the details of the 'distribution list' for this CMT document and the identities of the various individuals to whom the report was sent?

4 Please confirm whether the information contained in Appendix 5 can be reconstructed, in full or in part, from other documents (in draft or other form) which are still in the Council's possession? If none of the information can be reconstructed or recovered from other sources, please explain why? 

5 Please confirm the details of what steps the Investigating Officer took to obtain a copy of the missing document? 

6 Please confirm whether the deliberate removal or theft of Appendix 5 has been considered as a possible explanation for the document's sudden disappearance?

7 Please confirm whether Police Scotland have been invited to investigate the deliberate removal or theft of the CMT document as a possible case of misfeasance or malfeasance in public office? Which is, of course, a criminal offence.

8 Please provide me with a copy of the Investigation Report referred to at Point 1 above along with copies of all internal correspondence (including emails) relating to the Council's investigation into this incident?        

I look forward to your reply and would be grateful if you could respond to me by e-mail to: markirvine@compuserve.com

    

Kind regards

Mark Irvine