FOI Reality Check: Newcastle City Council vs North East Combined Authority
Freedom of Information is a legal right, not a polite favour. Two similar requests on the same subject were made to Newcastle City Council and the North East Combined Authority. The results could not have been more different.
- Newcastle City Council supplied detailed, itemised disclosure including payments, monitoring material, correspondence, and clear exemption reasoning.
- NECA acknowledged funding to The Recruitment Junction from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the North of Tyne Small Grant Programme, but treated factual clarifications as “not appropriate” and only folded them into FOI scope (Ref: 2508 176) after repeated challenge.
What Newcastle City Council did right
Newcastle City Council’s FOI response (Ref: 24689) was comprehensive. It provided itemised payments to The Recruitment Junction, monitoring reports, correspondence records, and transparent explanations for any exemptions. This is what compliance with the FOI Act should look like.
How NECA handled the same issue
NECA’s handling (Ref: 2508 176) was fragmented and evasive. Although it confirmed that The Recruitment Junction received public funds, it refused to clarify whether the CEO’s claim that the charity had received “no public money” was accurate. Basic follow-up questions were dismissed as outside FOI scope, then reluctantly accepted after pressure.
| Test | Newcastle City Council | North East Combined Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Funding clarity | Itemised payments and clear context disclosed | Confirmed public funds but resisted clarifying contradictions |
| Follow-up handling | Follow-ups answered with reasons for any limits | Follow-ups treated as “not appropriate”, only later processed under FOI scope |
| Culture signal | Openness, duty to inform | Defensiveness, obstruction, delay |
Why the gap matters
When one body can disclose fully and another cannot, trust in regional governance is undermined. This is not a private quarrel but a test of public accountability. If Newcastle can comply, so can NECA.
Next steps
Given NECA’s resistance, we will be formally contacting Kim McGuinness, Mayor of the North East, to request her response. As the elected figurehead for the region, she has a duty to ensure that statutory rights like FOI are upheld with consistency and respect.
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