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| Commercial interests. |
41. - (1) Information is exempt information if it constitutes a trade secret.
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(2) Information is exempt information if its disclosure under this Act would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person (including the public authority holding it).
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(3) The duty to confirm or deny does not arise if, or to the extent that, compliance with section 1(1)(a) would, or would be likely to, prejudice the interests mentioned in subsection (2).
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| Prohibitions on disclosure. |
42. - (1) Information is exempt information if its disclosure (otherwise than under this Act) by the public authority holding it-
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(a) is prohibited by or under any enactment, |
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(b) is incompatible with any Community obligation, or |
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(c) would constitute or be punishable as a contempt of court. |
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(2) The duty to confirm or deny does not arise if the confirmation or denial that would have to be given to comply with section 1(1)(a) would (apart from this Act) fall within any of paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (1).
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| Power to confer additional exemptions by order. |
43. - (1) Information is exempt information if-
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(a) it is information to which an order made by the Secretary of State under this subsection applies, and |
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(b) its disclosure under this Act would, or would be likely to, have such effects adverse to the public interest as may be specified in the order. |
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(2) If at any time it appears to the Secretary of State, in relation to particular information which is already in existence at that time, that the public interest in exempting the information from disclosure under this Act outweighs the public interest in allowing access to the information, he may by order provide that the information is to be exempt information.
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(3) An order under subsection (1) or (2) may-
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(a) provide that the duty to confirm or deny is not to arise in relation to information which is (or if it were held by the public authority would be) exempt information by virtue of the order, and |
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(b) apply any provision of section 62 or 63 which is specified in the order, with such modifications as may be so specified, in relation to information which is exempt information by virtue of the order. |
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(4) An order under subsection (1) or (2) which comes into force on any day ("the commencement day") may be expressed to have effect in relation to requests for information which-
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(a) were made to any public authority on or after such earlier day as may be specified in the order, but |
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(b) have not been complied with by the authority before the commencement day. |
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(5) Where an order under subsection (1) or (2) is expressed to have such effect as is mentioned in subsection (4), a public authority is not to be taken to have failed to comply with any provision of Part I before the day on which the order comes into force by reason of any failure to comply with a request to which the order applies, to the extent to which the request relates to information which becomes exempt information by virtue of the order.
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(6) Before laying before Parliament a draft of an order under subsection (1) or (2), the Secretary of State shall-
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(a) consult the Commissioner, and |
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(b) publish any written representations made to him by the Commissioner with respect to the proposed order, except so far as those representations contain information which is, or if the order were made would be, exempt information. |
