The Housing
Corporation, the quango responsible for
distributing more than £2bn a year to housing associations, is
refusing to disclose the results of an independent investigation
into its problematic £17m IT modernisation programme.
The corporation has opposed an application from Computer Weekly
under the Freedom of Information Act to disclose the results of an
investigation by Methods Consulting which could offer valuable
lessons for other major IT projects.
Computer Weekly lodged a complaint with the information
commissioner this month, arguing that the Housing Corporation had
wrongly approached the request by starting from the assumption that
the report should not be disclosed. Computer Weekly argued that it
should at least publish a redacted version under the FOI Act.
Computer Weekly has learned that the Housing Corporation sought
advice from the Treasury solicitor's department on how to refuse
any possible FOI applications within weeks of commissioning the
Methods Consulting report.
Housing Corporation chief executive Jon Rouse, who inherited the
application service provider (ASP) project when he joined the
corporation in June 2004, asked officials to investigate the legal
position that could be used to defend FOI Act requests, Computer
Weekly has learned.
Months before any findings were known, the Housing Corporation's
freedom of information officer Matthew Sabourin drafted a memo to
executives detailing legal exemptions and public interest arguments
that could be used in the event of an FOI request.
"The chief executive has asked me to look into possible
exemptions in the FOI Act to disclosing the report," he
subsequently wrote.
"I have identified a number of possible exemptions. It is very
difficult to give specific advice at this stage because the
complete findings of the report are not known."
The Housing Corporation claims that the contents of the Methods
Consulting report, which was delivered in its final form in April
last year, are so commercially sensitive that it is unable to
publish even an edited version of the findings.
The corporation issued a formal response to Computer Weekly in
January, arguing that publication of the report would damage its
commercial interests and those of its former supplier, Elonex, and
would inhibit the government's independent Gateway process for
reviewing public sector IT projects.
The corporation also claimed that the report contains "personal
information" that could impact the privacy of individuals.
Computer Weekly is challenging these arguments, and calling for
the Housing Corporation to publish at least a redacted version of
the report's findings.
The Housing Corporation's approach raised questions over whether
officials are giving weight to the public interest arguments in
favour of disclosure, said Dai Davies IT lawyer at commercial law
firm Brooke North.
"The legislation requires the authority to determine whether to
reveal information or not. They appear to have prejudged that issue
by the arrangements they have put in place in advance not to
release the information," he said.
The Housing Corporation said it did not want to comment on the
FOI application. Gideon Wetrin, former CEO of Elonex, has also not
commented.
Related article:
Housing Corporation
orders a review of £17m ASP IT project
Related article:
Housing Corporation stays mum: Housing Corporation holds back
report on troubled IT project
Related article:
Housing Corp ends Elonex contract
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