Central Government FOI: Departments & Cabinet Office | UK JournoHub

Last reviewed: 17 May 2026Next review due: 17 November 2026

Central government and FOIA: the landscape

All UK government ministerial departments are public authorities under FOIA 2000. This includes the Cabinet Office (and by extension Number 10), HM Treasury, the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), DEFRA, the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice, MHCLG, the Department for Education, HMRC (subject to significant carve-outs), and all other departments. Non-ministerial departments (HMRC, Competition and Markets Authority) and arm’s-length bodies (agencies, NDPBs, regulators, executive agencies) are also public authorities — but each is a separate entity and must be FOI-ed individually.

Central government is distinctive in three ways: the cost ceiling is £600 (not £450); the policy-related exemptions (s.35, s.36) are used more heavily than anywhere else; and the Cabinet veto (s.53) exists, though its use has been constrained since the Evans Supreme Court decision in 2015.

But central government also publishes more proactively than almost any other type of public authority. Quarterly ministerial transparency data, published departmental accounts, parliamentary written answers, select committee reports, and the IPA major projects data can all provide story leads and context without any FOI needed.

The central government exemptions you will face most

S.35 — Policy formulation

Protects information relating to policy development, ministerial communications, and law officers' advice. Qualified — public interest test applies. Most powerful when the policy decision is recent; weakest for historical decisions or factual evidence.

S.36 — Effective conduct of public affairs

Requires sign-off from a "qualified person" (usually Secretary of State or Permanent Secretary). Must specify who gave the opinion and why. Challenge it if the opinion is not identified or is not specific to the information requested.

S.35(1)(d) — Ministerial private offices

Protects internal communications within ministerial private offices. Narrower than it sounds — it does not protect all communications involving ministers, only those directly relating to how private offices operate.

S.24 — National security

An absolute exemption when certified by a minister. Genuinely hard to challenge. Most relevant to FCDO, Home Office, and Cabinet Office requests on security matters.

When to file central government FOI requests

1Ministerial briefing packs and advice on a specific policy decision — especially after a decision has been announced and s.35 weakens.
2Contracts and procurement: value, counterparty, and performance data for major government contracts with named suppliers.
3Special advisers: numbers by department, pay band, and roles — beyond what is in the mandatory quarterly transparency data.
4Ministerial diaries: meetings with external organisations not captured in the quarterly publication, or details of meetings that were logged but not described.
5IPA/Infrastructure and Projects Authority: project amber/red ratings and the evidence behind them.
6Government legal advice: law officers' advice on a specific measure (expect s.35(1)(c) but challenge the public interest where the decision is significant).
7Regulatory impact assessments and cost-benefit analyses behind major policy decisions.
8Correspondence between departments and industry lobbyists or trade associations on specific policy matters.

Red flags in a government department refusal

S.35 cited for factual evidence or statistical data that underpins policy — factual evidence is not the same as policy deliberation.
S.36 cited without identifying who the qualified person is and what opinion they gave.
The policy decision was made years ago and s.35 is still claimed as a shield — the "chilling effect" on candid advice does not persist indefinitely.
S.12 cost limit cited for a request that seems clearly within 24 hours of effort — ask for a detailed cost breakdown.
A blanket s.35 claim covering a range of different document types — the department should assess each category separately.
An arm's-length body redirecting your request to the parent department when it holds the information itself.
S.21 (accessible by other means) cited without explaining exactly where the information is accessible and how to find it.

Central government FOI request checklist

Checked quarterly ministerial transparency data before filing — meetings, hospitality, gifts, and travel are published without FOI.
Checked written parliamentary answers (Hansard / parliament.uk) — answers to PQs are free and fast.
Checked published departmental accounts and IPA project data on gov.uk.
Identified the correct public authority — is it the department itself or an arm's-length body?
Kept the request under 24 hours of estimated officer time to stay within the £600 cost limit.
For policy-related requests: focused on factual evidence and analysis rather than deliberative material to minimise s.35 exposure.
For contracts: specified post-award data, which has lower commercial sensitivity than pre-award.
Set a 20-working-day deadline reminder and prepared for a possible extension on complex requests.
If refused on s.35: drafted an internal review arguing the policy is finalised and the public interest test clearly favours disclosure.
If refused on s.36: asked for the identity of the qualified person and a copy of the opinion given.

Challenging a government department refusal?

Use our FOI Appeal Builder to draft an internal review request that specifically addresses s.35 and s.36 claims — with the right public interest arguments built in.

Open FOI Appeal Builder

Common mistakes

Not checking quarterly transparency data first — meetings, hospitality, and SpAd numbers are already public.
Filing an FOI to the parent department for data held by an arm's-length body — each is a separate authority.
Accepting a s.35 refusal on factual evidence and analysis without challenging that factual data is not policy deliberation.
Not asking who the "qualified person" was for a s.36 refusal — the sign-off process is legally required.
Filing one large request covering multiple policy areas — break it up to manage the £600 cost ceiling.
Forgetting that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has additional statutory restrictions on taxpayer information beyond FOIA.
Treating the s.53 Cabinet veto as the end of the road — the Evans case (2015) significantly limits its scope.

Related guides

EIR vs FOIA

When environmental requests to DEFRA and agencies fall under EIR rather than FOIA.

University FOI Requests

UKRI and research councils as arm's-length bodies; foreign donations and academic freedom.

Investigative Journalism Techniques

Parliamentary questions, select committees, and ministerial correspondence.

FOI Appeal Builder

Draft an internal review targeting s.35 and s.36 government refusals.

Primary sources

Frequently asked questions

Why is the cost limit £600 for central government rather than £450?

The Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004 set different cost ceilings: £600 for central government departments (including the Cabinet Office, Number 10, HMT, DEFRA, FCDO, and all ministerial departments) and £450 for most other public authorities including local councils and the NHS. The calculation rate is the same — £25 per hour — meaning the £600 ceiling equates to 24 hours of officer time. This higher limit reflects the volume and complexity of central government information.

What is the s.35 exemption and how is it used?

Section 35 of FOIA exempts information that relates to the formulation or development of government policy, ministerial communications, law officers' advice, and the operation of ministerial private offices. It is a qualified exemption — the public interest test applies. S.35 is one of the most commonly cited exemptions by central government. To challenge it, argue that: (a) the policy decision was made long ago and the "chilling effect" on candid advice is now minimal; (b) the public interest in understanding how a major policy decision was made outweighs the risk of deterring frank advice; or (c) the information sought is factual evidence underlying the policy, not the policy deliberation itself — factual evidence is much harder to withhold.

What is the Cabinet veto and when has it been used?

Section 53 of FOIA gives the Attorney General (or the Advocate General for Scotland) the power to issue a certificate overriding an Information Commissioner or Tribunal decision requiring disclosure. The veto effectively blocks disclosure by a certified executive override. It has been used a small number of times — most notably in 2012 to block disclosure of the Ministerial Code advice on the Iraq War (vetoed twice), and in 2009 to block disclosure of Cabinet minutes on the 2003 Iraq War decision. The Supreme Court in R (Evans) v Attorney General [2015] UKSC 21 significantly limited the veto, holding it could not be used simply to disagree with a Tribunal's conclusion — there must be "reasonable grounds" beyond mere disagreement.

Are Number 10 and the Cabinet Office the same public authority for FOI purposes?

Number 10 Downing Street is not a separate public authority — it is part of the Cabinet Office for FOI purposes. Requests about the Prime Minister's office, special advisers based in Number 10, and the Prime Minister's private office should be sent to the Cabinet Office. The Cabinet Office also oversees government transparency obligations, publishes the quarterly transparency data on ministerial meetings, hospitality, gifts, and foreign travel.

What transparency data is already published by central government without FOI?

Under Cabinet Office rules, all central government departments must publish quarterly: ministerial meetings with external organisations (by minister and organisation name); ministerial gifts and hospitality received above £140; ministerial overseas travel costs; and special adviser (SpAd) numbers and pay bands. Senior civil servant pay is also published annually. This is a rich source of story leads without any FOI needed. The Major Projects Authority (now Infrastructure and Projects Authority) publishes project health data in its annual report. Written parliamentary answers, committee reports, and published departmental accounts are also free sources of government data.