FOI Fox Hunting (1293-2023/24)

Request

I am writing to make a formal request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for information held by North Yorkshire Police regarding police activities relating to fox hunting and any details of deals made between hunting groups and the police.

I am seeking specific information on the following:

Q1. Details of police activities and interventions in relation to fox hunting within the jurisdiction of North Yorkshire Police for the past three years.

Q2. Any documents, memos, or correspondence between North Yorkshire Police and fox hunting groups or representatives, including any agreements or understandings reached between the parties.

Q3. Information on the resources allocated by North Yorkshire Police to monitor and address fox hunting incidents, including the number of officers involved, hours dedicated, and any associated costs.

Q4. Records of arrests, charges, or warnings issued by North Yorkshire Police in connection with fox hunting activities, including details of outcomes.

Q5. Any policies, guidelines, or standard operating procedures that North Yorkshire Police has in place regarding their response to fox hunting incidents and interactions with hunting groups.

Response

Extent of Searches to Locate Information

Following receipt of your request searches were conducted within North Yorkshire Police to locate relevant information. 

Decision

I am not obliged to provide you with a response to your request pursuant to Section 12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act). Please note that when one part of your request falls under Section 12, we are not obliged to review the rest of the questions and the whole request is therefore exempt.

Section 12(1) applies to your request as the cost of complying with your request is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of identifying and retrieving any relevant information exceeds the ‘appropriate level’ as stated in the Freedom of Information (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004.

In order to retrieve the information you have requested, it would be necessary to conduct a search across the whole force for any correspondence, including that which is written, relating to the policing of Fox Hunting. A manual read would then be required to determine if it related to your request, exceeding the time limit allowed under the Act.

Pursuant to Section 17(5) of the Freedom of Information Act this letter acts as a Refusal Notice.

Pursuant to Section 16 of the Act I am required to offer you advice and assistance with regarding to refining your request to within the ‘appropriate limit’ (time/cost limit). However, we may be able to provide you with some information in relation to Q4 if you resubmit your request.  If you wish to discuss this please do not hesitate to contact me.

You may find the information on the links below useful.

Illegal hunting | North Yorkshire Police

Types of illegal hunting | North Yorkshire Police

Please note that systems used for recording information are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the data.  It should be noted therefore that this force’s response to your questions should not be used for comparison purposes with any other responses you may receive.