Overview

This section aims to contain all currently ongoing research / theories / investigations as well as unfinished sections of BBC, Ofcom or Argument Databases.

Information to obtain

• [ ] Ascertain, for Ofcom definition, if Panorama can be considered News or only Factual programming? In relation to Section 5 OBC specifically.
• [ ] Request information from BBC about answers to screening question that the reported put, for each of the four clinics
• [ ] Request information from BBC about the initial whistleblowing case, who brought it up and the result of their assessment, reason for their case absence in the episode, etc
• [ ] Request information from BBC about the scrutiny applied to “dozens of employees” that the Team has talked to. Ask them to elaborate on the contents of the respondents, specifically - percentage of them still working vs terminated, percentage in NHS and private clinics
• [ ] Request information from BBC about the answers that were received from the online communities and why they were not included in the program, was there a specific decision to exclude them, and if so what were the criteria for inclusion
• [ ] Request information from BBC about whether the Panorama team posted the post referred to here on r/adhduk subreddit (need to find the original post lol)
• [ ] Request information from BBC about the Panorama team following the internal Referrals (both mandatory and optional) process for all of the Guideline sections that warranted it as per the BBCEG, especially on Secret Recording, Investigation and Privacy

What we can request via FOIRs?

• [ ] What funds were spent by the BBC Panorama Team on production of the episode, especially maybe what they’ve spent on private referrals?

How FOIR (Freedom of Information Requests) work?

Unfortunately, due to a Schedule I derogation in the Freedom of Information Act, 2000 (FOIA), the BBC has a substantial range of information it can withhold from the public and it doesn’t have to comply with Part I - Access to information held by public authorities and Part V - Appeals of the FOIA which cover, well, basically everything.

The BBC is a public authority for the purposes of the FOIA — “in respect of information held for purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature.”

The British Broadcasting Corporation, in respect of information held for purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature.” 8. This means that the BBC has no obligation to comply with Part I to V of the FOIA where information is held for 'purposes of journalism, art or literature

<aside> ℹ️ In summary, if the information is held and relates to ‘output’ then it falls outside FOIA. The “output” is essentially any of BBCs’ programming.

</aside>

On 15 February 2012, the Supreme Court in Sugar (Deceased) v British Broadcasting Corporation and another [2012] UKSC 4 gave a clear definition of what the phrase ‘journalism, art or literature’ means in FOIA and what types of information it will cover; the Supreme Court found that

…the composite expression ‘journalism, art or literature’ seems to be intended to cover the whole of the BBC’s output in its mission (under article 5 of its Royal Charter) to inform, educate and entertain the public. On that comprehensive approach the purposes of journalism, art or literature would be, quite simply, the purposes of the BBC’s entire output to the public.

Lord Walker at paragraph 70