Publication scheme
Each government department has a publication scheme, which makes information available to the public about how it operates and how it spends its budget.
You don’t need to make a Freedom of Information (FOI) request for these and can find information by searching for documents in either FOI releases or publications on this website.
Ministry of Defence publication scheme
There are a variety of ways members of the public can obtain information from the Ministry of Defence. Some information is released proactively and can be accessed through this website, while other categories of information are only available on request. If you need information in an alternative format, we will do all we reasonably can to help.
Our publication scheme follows the Information Commissioner’s model publication scheme for public authorities. It covers the following parts of the MOD:
All of the information is set into ‘classes’. These classes are:
Who we are and what we do
Organisational information, locations and contacts, constitutional and legal governance.
What we spend and how we spend it
Financial information relating to projected and actual income and expenditure, tendering, procurement and contracts, including:
- MOD annual report and accounts 2012/13
- Allowance changes
- Senior officers: hospitality received
- Senior officers: business expenses
- Special advisers: gifts and hospitality received
- Ministers: gifts, hospitality, travel and meetings
- Senior staff: hospitality received
- Senior staff: business expenses
- Public sector appointees: tax arrangements
- Workforce management
- Non-consolidated performance awards
- Senior staff salaries
- Business plan
- Exceptions to cross-government spending controls
- Contracts finder
How we make decisions
Details relating to meetings held by Senior Staff and Special Advisers within the MOD. This includes:
Other classes
We also publish information on our website in publications relating to the following:
- what our priorities are and how we are doing
- our policies and procedures: current written protocols for delivering our functions and responsibilities
- lists and registers: information held in registers required by law and other lists and registers relating to the functions of the authority
- the services we offer: advice and guidance, booklets and leaflets, transactions and media releases
Although our aims is to be as open as possible, we will not publish information that is:
- protected from disclosure
- in draft form
- no longer readily available
Archived information previously on www.mod.uk is available from National Archives.
MOD FOI publication scheme guide to information
The MOD FOI publication scheme guide to information is presently being reviewed and will be updated in due course. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) definition documents the scheme will be based on are:
-
Definition document for the Armed Forces of the Crown (excluding any Special Forces)
Charging policy for information
The department publishes most information online, where it is available for you to view free of charge. If you do not have access to the internet, a printed copy of the web page(s) can be sent to you free of charge.
The following may incur a charge:
- requests for multiple copies
- request for the information in a different format
- requests for archived documents that are no longer available on our website
Any charges made will be to cover the costs of photocopying, postage and packing. You will be told in advance of supplying the information if there will be a charge, and how much it will be.
Transparency
Transparency is about bringing the operation of government into the open and is key to the coalition government’s vision for how public services should be delivered so that everyone can see whether this is good value for money. Through transparency the government is aiming to:
- promote social and economic growth
- drive improved service delivery
- and increase the accountability of public services
Over the next two years MOD will build on the progress made to date, and subject to operational and resource constraints, seek to embed transparency as normal business.
Information not already published
If you cannot find what you want through this scheme, or otherwise on our website, you may wish to make a request to us under the FOI Act or the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR).
How to make an official request for Information
Before making a request it is worth checking to see if the information is already available in FOI releases, publications and or pre May 2010 so will be archived material that is available from the National Archives . If you cannot find the information you require after searching these areas, you may have to submit a request for information. This must be submitted in writing to:
MOD Information Rights Team
Ground floor, zone D
Main Building
Whitehall
London SW1A 2HB
Email: CIO-FOI@mod.gov.uk
This must provide your:
- name (title, first name and surname)
- a postal address and or email address for reply
- include a description of the information required (please be as specific as possible)
We will deal with your request as quickly as we can, and will aim to let you have a response within 20 working days. If for any reason we are unable to let you have a response within 20 working days we will contact you as soon as possible explaining the reason for this.
Requests for personal data and Service records
If the request is to obtain information about yourself or Service records please click here.
Personal data is not generally available under the Freedom of Information Act.
Disclosure on request
Provided the information requested is not exempt from disclosure, for example, the information may be withheld to protect personal privacy, national security or commercial interests, our aim is to be as open as possible.
How to complain if you are unhappy with the handling of your requests
If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of the reply to your request for information or the way it was handled, you have the right to complain,. Before doing so you might like to consider whether less formal action might provide the remedy you seek. For example, if you require clarification of some aspects of the information you received, the person who dealt with your request will probably be best able to help you. However, if you do wish to complain there are two stages to this process:
The Information Rights Compliance team will conduct an independent internal review of the way your request was handled. You can contact the Information Rights Compliance team by writing to:
Information Rights Compliance team, Ground floor, zone D Whitehall, SW1A 2HB
Email: CIO-FOI@mod.gov.uk
If you remain dissatisfied following an internal review, you may take your complaint to the Information Commissioner under the provisions of Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act. Please note that the Information Commissioner will not normally investigate your case until you have exhausted the use of the MOD’s internal complaints procedure. Further details of the role and powers of the Information Commissioner can be found on the Commissioner’s website.
Please see the MOD FOI and EIR complaints and appeals procedure for a full description of the official appeals procedure
If you would like to provide feedback, good or bad, about the MOD publication scheme, or have a specific complaint, please contact the Information Systems and Services (ISS) Strategy, Policy and Practice Information Rights Operations team as follows:
MOD Information Rights team
Ground floor, zone D
Main Building
Whitehall
London SW1A 2HB
Email: CIO-FOI@mod.gov.uk