Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether information in scope of a Humble Address may be redacted from the Government response for reasons other than (a) national security, (b) international relations, (c) legal privilege or (d) the protection of personal data.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government’s statement and release of information on 1st June, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government’s methodology in complying with the Humble Address was set out in the Volume II publication.

For documents requiring redactions related to national security or international relations, the Intelligence and Security Committee provided assistance with the review process, for which the Government is grateful. Any other targeted redactions have been made in accordance with clear precedents established by previous governments in their responses to Humble Addresses.

Specifically, these targeted redactions are in order to protect:

a. Individuals’ email addresses and phone numbers;

b. The identities of junior civil servants;

c. Third party data - including the personal or commercially sensitive data of third parties not relevant to the motion; and

d. Legal professional privilege