29 March 2023
Your request
The total cost of the camera enforcement van, which is regularly parked on Concanon Road, pointing at the LTN on the junction of Concanon Road and Santley Street. Please include the total costs to the council of paying for this van to be parked here, with a council employee present, for the entirety of the time it has been placed there.
The total amount of revenue received from PCNs, captured by this van specifically at the LTN of Santley Street and Concanon Road.
Our response
The total cost of the camera enforcement van, which is regularly parked on Concanon Road, pointing at the LTN on the junction of Concanon Road and Santley Street.
We consider that the EIR is the correct legislation for this response.
We note that Section 2(EIR) defines Environmental Information as follows:-
Environmental Information has the same meaning as in Article 2(1) of the Directive, namely any information in written, visual, aural, electronic or any other material form on—
a) the state of the elements of the environment, such as air and atmosphere, water,soil, land, landscape and natural sites including wetlands, coastal and marine areas, biological diversity and its components, including genetically modified organisms, and the interaction among these elements;
b) factors, such as substances, energy, noise, radiation or waste, including radioactive waste, emissions, discharges and other releases into the environment, affecting or likely to affect the elements of the environment referred to in (a);
c) measures (including administrative measures), such as policies, legislation, plans, programmes, environmental agreements, and activities affecting or likely to affect the elements and factors referred to in (a) and (b) as well as measures or activities designed to protect those elements;
(d) reports on the implementation of environmental legislation;
(e) cost-benefit and other economic analyses and assumptions used within the framework of the measures and activities referred to in (c); and
(f) the state of human health and safety, including the contamination of the food chain, where relevant, conditions of human life, cultural sites and built structures inasmuch as they are or may be affected by the state of the elements of the environment referred to in (a) or, through those elements, by any of the matters referred to in (b) and (c);
I can confirm that we have reviewed your request but consider that the information is commercially sensitive and therefore we are unable to provide it.
We therefore engage Regulation 12(5e) to this part of the request.
Regulation 12 (5)(e) Confidentiality of commercial or industrial information
12.—(5) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), a public authority may refuse to disclose information to the extent that its disclosure would adversely affect—(e) the confidentiality of commercial or industrial information where such confidentiality is provided by law to protect a legitimate economic interest
Releasing the total costs so close to going out to tender (new parking enforcement contract), could possibly be broken down by competitors, giving an unfair advantage at this stage in the contract.
As this request relates to Environmental Information; we have also considered the public interest in disclosure/maintaining the exception.
Public Interest in Disclosure
We note Regulation 12(2) EIR has a presumption of disclosure.
We also consider that disclosure would increase the public’s understanding of this issue and we note the general benefit in transparency where possible.
Public Interest in maintaining the exception
It is not in the public interest to provide commercially sensitive information if it would mean that the Council cannot attract future suppliers as we cannot then achieve the best value for money for our residents.
Please include the total costs to the council of paying for this van to be parked here, with a council employee present, for the entirety of the time it has been placed there.
As above answer
The total amount of revenue received from PCNs, captured by this van specifically at the LTN of Santley Street and Concanon Road.
Santley street (Ferndale LTN): First PCNs issued from 27 May 2021.
Concanon Road: First PCNs issued from 05 October 2022.
The total amount of PCN revenue captured from the start of the above LTN’s is: £35,071.00