Part I

Access to information held by public authorities

Right to information

Special provisions relating to public records transferred to Public Record Office, etc
15
1
Where—
a
the appropriate records authority receives a request for information which relates to information which is, or if it existed would be, contained in a transferred public record, and
b
either of the conditions in subsection (2) is satisfied in relation to any of that information,
that authority shall, within the period for complying with section 1(1), send a copy of the request to the responsible authority.
2
The conditions referred to in subsection (1)(b) are—
a
that the duty to confirm or deny is expressed to be excluded only by a provision of Part II not specified in subsection (3) of section 2, and
b
that the information is exempt information only by virtue of a provision of Part II not specified in that subsection.
3
On receiving the copy, the responsible authority shall, within such time as is reasonable in all the circumstances, inform the appropriate records authority of the determination required by virtue of subsection (3) or (4) of section 66.
4
In this Act “transferred public record” means a public record which has been transferred—
a
to the Public Record Office,
b
to another place of deposit appointed by the Lord Chancellor under the Public Records Act 1958, or
c
to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland.
5
In this Act—
- “appropriate records authority”, in relation to a transferred public record, means—
  1. in a case falling within subsection (4)(a), the Public Record Office,
  2. in a case falling within subsection (4)(b), the Lord Chancellor, and
  3. in a case falling within subsection (4)(c), the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland;
- “responsible authority”, in relation to a transferred public record, means—
  1. in the case of a record transferred as mentioned in subsection (4)(a) or (b) from a government department in the charge of a Minister of the Crown, the Minister of the Crown who appears to the Lord Chancellor to be primarily concerned,
  2. in the case of a record transferred as mentioned in subsection (4)(a) or (b) from any other person, the person who appears to the Lord Chancellor to be primarily concerned,
  3. in the case of a record transferred to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland from a government department in the charge of a Minister of the Crown, the Minister of the Crown who appears to the appropriate Northern Ireland Minister to be primarily concerned,
  4. in the case of a record transferred to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland from a Northern Ireland department, the Northern Ireland Minister who appears to the appropriate Northern Ireland Minister to be primarily concerned, or
  5. in the case of a record transferred to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland from any other person, the person who appears to the appropriate Northern Ireland Minister to be primarily concerned.
1958 c. 51.