Freedom of Information Act Requests & Belfast International Airport

What a mess!

Many of you following this blog will recall that we recently submitted a Freedom of Information Act Request in relation to matters of policing at Belfast International Airport.

Firstly, it is quite notable how unprofessional the airport’s handling of such requests is compared to public bodies. The public bodies take the requests seriously, communicate often and frequently and provide detailed and full disclosure.

Not so Belfast International Airport. A gentleman by the name of Kevin Napier seems to be the only person dealing with these matters, as well as all other compliance matters. He was the person who ignored my concerns about goods safety, only to see my complaint partially upheld by the HSE. More on that to come - but overall concerns about his competence seem reasonable.

Anyway, take a look at the absolute nonsense response to the recent FOIA request - the document is pasted in full below - which essentially seems to state that the airport doesn’t keep records of policing in the same format or system as the PSNI do and use different classifications. Furthermore they hide behind the PSNI as record keeper despite being the employing organisation.

As a result, they rely on exemptions from disclosure under FOIA extensively on the grounds that it would take too much time to comply.

This is completely inappropriate and appears to be another example of why the airport is not delivering a public service in line with that which the PSNI delivers. This should be subject to judicial review.

A deep dive into the meagre information that the airport has actually disclosed will follow.

UPDATE 18 December 2024 - A review into the handling of this request has been requested and it will escalate to the Information Commissioner if it is not handled properly.

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The reply in full. Responses in italics:

3 December 2024

Eddie Holmes

c/o eddie@allster.co

Dear Mr Holmes

Freedom of Information Request

Ref

Thank you for your recent Freedom of Information (FoI) request regarding a range of items relating to Belfast International Airport Constabulary (BIAC).

Your specific request was:

Dear Kevin

I am very concerned about safety at Belfast International Airport and in particular it's policing arrangements. This is a Freedom of Information Act request.

Please provide the following:

- Full details of firearms training undertaken by airport police officers in the calendar years 2021-2023. This should include how many training sessions each officer undertook

- a summary of each incident in which an airport police officer accompanied or was in any other way involved with anyone suspected or charged with a crime committed on airport property in the calendar years 2019-2024. This should include the disorderly male who was accompanied to Tigers Bay by airport police

- details of the ammunition storage policy and any violations or contraventions of this policy in the past ten years

- the policy relating to the airport police and parking fines. This should include details of any instances in the past 3 years where the airport police have been tasked to enforce airport parking rules and/or collection of any fines imposed by the airport on motorists including private hire taxi drivers

- in relation to instances in which the airport police have been requested to attend by Wilson James in the past three years, how many of those requests resulted in arrests

For the purposes of this request you may redact the name of individual officers.

Kind regards

Eddie Holmes

On 28th October 2024 I requested clarification:

Dear Mr Holmes

Thank you for your recent FoI – below.

We are currently in the process of collecting the necessary data for your response. The second request within your list asks for a summary of each incident over a six-year period. The work involved in this request would exceed the appropriate limit detailed in the guidance. If a statistical summary of the data will suffice this may be achievable within the appropriate limit. Could you confirm whether this is acceptable or whether you would plan to modify your request.

regards

On 6th November you responded.

HI Kevin

The summary is in relation to individuals where they were accompanied off airport property, not on it. That should dramatically reduce the size of the request.

FYI the way you guys handle these requests is so poor compared to public bodies - you are supposed to be delivering an equivalent public service but it's incomparably poor in comparison. Try making one to Stormont on ANBC about how much public fundingthe airport has received if you want an example.

Eddie

In response to your update please see answers to each point:

Please provide the following:

- Full details of firearms training undertaken by airport police officers in the calendar years 2021-2023. This should include how many training sessions each officer undertook.

All firearms training is conducted by the Police Service of Northern Ireland and follows their training standards. The training detail is ‘owned’ by the PSNI and is not for BIAC to share. All officers undertook the necessary training sessions to meet the PSNI training requirements.

- A summary of each incident in which an airport police officer accompanied or was in any other way involved with anyone suspected or charged with a crime committed on airport property in the calendar years 2019-2024. This should include the disorderly male who was accompanied to Tigers Bay by airport police.

Updated to:

-The summary is in relation to individuals where they were accompanied off airport property, not on it. That should dramatically reduce the size of the request.

As noted in my email to you on the 28/10/24, this question is too broad to allow a response within the appropriate limit detailed in the guidance. Over the period requested there have been over 22,000 events where BIAC officers have recorded information within our data management system. Each item would need to be reviewed to determine whether it meets the scope of your question and then a summary would need to be created for those appropriate events. This would clearly exceed the 18 hours permitted in the regulations. Your update of 6th November unfortunately did not affect the level of work required as both the original and modified request did fall within our search criteria within the database.

However, in relation to the specific event you have included, a summary of this event is:

- BIAC officers were called to attend where a male was making a nuisance in the checkin hall.

- He was clearly intoxicated and a little erratic.

- BIAC officers spent some time talking with the gentleman and upon questioning it was decided appropriate to accompany him back to his home (not Tigers Bay).

- The gentleman was handcuffed for the duration of the journey.

- BIAC officers returned to the airport.

- Details of the ammunition storage policy and any violations or contraventions of this policy in the past ten years.

All officers on operational duty at the start of shift sign as taking possession of a firearm and ammunition, with concurring action taken by the Duty Sergeant and the Duty Sergeant is responsible for carrying out a weekly physical check to confirm all accounted for.

There have been no recorded discrepancies or violations of BIAC ammunition.

- the policy relating to the airport police and parking fines. This should include details of any instances in the past 3 years where the airport police have been tasked to enforce airport parking rules and/or collection of any fines imposed by the airport on motorists including private hire taxi drivers.

There is no policy in relation to BIAC issuing parking fines as BIAC do not issue parking fines.

In relation to enforcing airport parking rules, this covers a wide number of possible events, such as issuing staff parking tickets, parking offences under the byelaws, vehicle obstruction offences. Based on the broad description within your question we have identified thefollowing figures.

Number of Occasions BIAC Have Been Tasked to Enforced Parking Rules

2021 2022 2023 2024 (to date)

12 30 213 110

There have been no fines imposed on any motorists, private hire taxi drivers or otherwise, because as previously stated BIAC do not issue parking fines.

- In relation to instances in which the airport police have been requested to attend by Wilson James in the past three years, how many of those requests resulted in arrests

Number of Occasions BIAC Have Been Requested by Wilson James Which Resulted in

Arrests

2021 2022 2023 2024 (to date)

0 4 7 6

If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request, you have the right to ask for an internal review. Internal review requests should be submitted within 2 months of the date of receipt of this letter and should be addressed to: Daniel Owens, Chief Executive Officer, who will nominate an officer of Belfast International Airport to undertake such internal review.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The IInformation Commissioner’s Office – Northern Ireland, 51 Adelaide Street, Belfast BT2 8FE.

If I can be of further assistance, please let me know.

Yours sincerely,

Kevin Napier

Artist’s impression not included in response!