Doug Paulley's blog

If anybody feels that an organisation may have failed to follow the Data Protection Act whilst dealing with their data, they can ask the ICO for an assessment about whether that processing is likely to have been OK or not, under S42 of the Data Protection Act. The ICO are obliged to respond unless they need the subject to supply more ID or more explanation as to what processing the subject’s concerned about. Those are the ONLY exemptions the ICO can use to avoid having to undertake a S42 assessment.

S42.2 On receiving a request under this section, the Commissioner shall make an assessment in such manner as appears to him to be appropriate, unless he has not been supplied with such information as he may reasonably require in order to—
(a) satisfy himself as to the identity of the person making the request, and
(b) enable him to identify the processing in question.

It is usually a good idea for the data subject to complain to the data controller before bothering the ICO. It’s often probably the best way to get the issue resolved speedily and with the least of fuss, to the benefit of both the data controller and the data subject. It also means that the ICO are less likely to be swamped with S42 requests about stuff that could have been sorted a lot easier by a simple email.

However, that isn’t appropriate in all cases.

My reading of the Act is that the ICO are under an obligation to respond to a data subject’s S42 request for assessment irrespective of whether the data subject has complained to the data controller. The ONLY factors they can take into consideration as to whether they must undertake an assessment or not, is whether they have enough ID to be confident the data subject is who (s)he says (s)he is, and whether they’ve been given enough information to identify the processing in question.

S42 lists other factors that the authority can take into account – but these factors are only to be taken into account when considering how the authority will go about the assessment, not IF they will undertake an assessment. They still have to do the assessment, irrespective of these factors. But in any case, these factors do not include whether or not the data subject has made a complaint to the data controller.

S42.3 The matters to which the Commissioner may have regard in determining in what manner it is appropriate to make an assessment include—
(a) the extent to which the request appears to him to raise a matter of substance,
(b) any undue delay in making the request, and
(c) whether or not the person making the request is entitled to make an application under section 7 in respect of the personal data in question.

So as far as I’m concerned, the law does not give the ICO latitude to insist data subjects complain to the data controller before submitting a S42 request. It doesn’t allow the ICO to refuse to undertake an assessment where the data subject hasn’t submitted a complaint direct to the data controller.

I submitted a S42 request recently, having not complained to the data controller first. The ICO responded:

I note that you also sent us a copy of an email received from ‘Charity Checkout’, which appears to be a trading name of ‘Online Giving Ltd’.  There is no other copy correspondence to show that you have raised a concern with ‘Online Giving Ltd’ in writing and allowed time for its response. You would need to do this before the ICO could progress any concern about this third organisation.

I remonstrated:

This approach is not in compliance with obligations under S42 of the Data Protection Act, which states:

I parroted the above in detail, showing that the ICO cannot legitimately insist on subjects complaining to the controller before the ICO is obliged to conduct an assessment.

It always bugs me when the ICO state that they will not make a S42 assessment unless the data subject has raised their concern with the data controller. This is evidently ingrained and standard practice in the ICO, but it has no basis in law. No doubt the ICO would like it to be in the law, acts as if it is the law and doubtless often it achieves a speedier resolution if the data subject  complains to the data controller, but the fact is that the Information Commissioner is obliged to undertake an assessment whether or not the data subject has raised their concern with the data controller.

As the ICO expects and requires data controllers to comply with the detail of the Data Protection Act, it should do so itself. S42 does not give the Commissioner the right to reject S42 requests on the basis that the data subject has not raised a concern with the data controller. That’s the letter of the law, and the ICO should comply with it.

Please register a complaint that the ICO’s standard practice in this specific is not in compliance with the Commissioner’s obligation under S42 of the Data Protection Act.

They gave their final response:

You are dissatisfied with this approach and do not consider that section 42 of the Act allows the ICO to require that you contact the organisation prior to requesting an assessment.

My Findings

The requirement for individuals to have raised their concerns with the organisation involved is part of the ICO’s operational policy, rather than being written into the legislation.

You will appreciate that the ICO has limited resources, and we cannot take action in response to every concern reported to us. Ultimately our role is to improve information rights practices, and we put our efforts into taking action in those areas where we can make the biggest improvement to the practice of those we regulate. We are an independent body and do not work on behalf of individuals

As explained on our website, we believe that the organisation responsible for a data protection matter should deal with it in the first instance. We expect organisations to take concerns seriously and work with the data subject to try to resolve them. Most organisations will want to put things right when they have gone wrong, and learn from complaints that are raised with them – further, it is best practice for them to have an effective complaints procedure.

If the organisation has been unable, or unwilling, to resolve an information rights concern, the data subject can then raise the matter for us to evaluate whether there is an opportunity to improve information rights practice.

For all of these reasons we are committed to giving organisations the opportunity to respond to public concerns before they are raised with us as the regulator.

I trust that this explains our approach.

Well yes, it explains their approach, but it doesn’t explain how their approach complies with the legislation, which was the sole point in my complaint. “We think our approach is better” isn’t a valid response to a complaint that said approach is not in accordance with their legal obligations.

However, they have successfully stonewalled me through their single-stage complaints procedure, so they won’t consider the issue any further. I wouldn’t want to bother the ombudsmen, partly as I haven’t experienced sufficient harm and in any case, as the ICO pointed out – “If your complaint relates to the way in which we have interpreted the law then the Ombudsman cannot help you.” The only further avenue suggested was, “If you want to challenge our interpretation of the law, you should consider seeking legal advice.” They presumably know that it doesn’t merit that.

I’m therefore reduced to publishing a whiny blog explaining how I’ve been wronged, on an obscure part of the Internet where nobody will read it — similar to the likes of Alan Dransfield.

But I still think I’m right, that the ICO are failing to comply with their legal obligations, and that they have succeeded in their intent of stonewalling me throughout the statutory procedures ostensibly designed to make sure they take on board complainants’ legitimate concerns and change accordingly. (Again, just like Dransfield. Perhaps we’re long-lost relatives or something.)

Taxi drivers who refuse wheelchair users or charge them more are breaking the law, but only if the Council / TFL has created a list of wheelchair accessible taxis.

This map shows which authorities have a S167 list (green), plan to produce one (yellow) or have no current plan to do so (red).
If your council doesn’t have a list, please contact them to ask them to produce a list, or to hurry up. Contacting councils has already resulted in multiple councils producing lists when they had previously refused.

I got Trapped Underground recently.

Incident report

Here’s an extract from the London Underground official report.

Incident Description :- At 1852 a wheelchair customer pressed the help point at the hub, bottom of escalators 16-19.
Lift #6 had been advertised as being out of service from 0629 this morning.
The gentleman complained that escalator 6 was out. CSM answered the call & explained that we have advertised that we are not step free on the TFL website.
The man asked what he should do & was given the suggestion that he take the Piccadilly Line lift to the platform, take a train to Caledonian Road & then take a bus down. He said that he’d miss his last train from KX.
This displeased him & he started saying that it should be on a board at every station & that he has sued LU twice & would do it again. I again repeated that it has been advertised to which he asked if he’s supposed to go online every time he travels?
Mid rant, the help point cut out. I could see him on CCTV still talking. Then he started hitting the emergency button repeatedly, which caused it to stick & the alarm go off continuously in the control room.
CSM , CSS & CSA started to make their way over to the hub, calling CSA to meet them there.
When they arrived, the man started going on about LU not caring about disabled people. “If it was an escalator out, it would be publicised everywhere, but because the lift is only for disabled people, you don’t care”.
I explained that the lifts are not just for disabled people. They are for anyone that wants to use them.
He again repeated that he’s sued LU twice & this will be number 3.
He said that he had a train to catch from KX & it was his last train tonight.
Rather than stand arguing with him, CSM asked CSAs & if they felt comfortable using the escalator to take the man up on his wheelchair. The man was rather large, but both agreed.
The man was taken up escalator 16.
He thanked the 2 CSAs at the top & went on his way, still talking lawsuits.
Findings of immediate investigation (basic cause) :- Lift 6 out of service for door repair.
Customer hadn’t bothered to check the TFL website before he travelled.

Other than the fact that I didn’t say that “it should be on a board at every station” (and of course that I am extremely slim and lithe 🙂 )  the report is largely correct. But it gives a very different flavour from the experience. Compare the cold hard report above from the real stressful experience in the video…

London Underground policy

I submitted a Freedom of Information Request:

Please provide me with your procedures and policy as to what you should do if a station’s lift goes out of order. The lift went out early morning, but there was no sign on the gates as to what to do, no warning at Green Park or Westminster or in the other lifts at Kings Cross and so on. When I pressed for help at the information point, staff had no existing plan as to how I could get to the surface, and had to think on their feet. I want to know what should have happened, at Kings Cross and elsewhere, as a result of step free access suddenly being withdrawn. I also want to know what actions you would take if the escalator or the stairs are broken or obstructed, so that I can compare and contrast your approaches. Please provide me with all of this information.

They supplied the following London Underground policies.
I’ll tick ☑ the relevant ones they did, and cross ☒ the relevant ones they didn’t.
The ‘Station Presentation’ section of the Customer Service Supervisors / Managers Handbook states:

When a lift is out of service:

• ☒ display a poster explaining that the lift is out of service
• ☒ tell stations either side
• ☒ display the information on the train operators boards

☒ Use general information boards to tell customers of the out of service lift as they might choose to use alternative routes.

The London Underground Rule Book 11 (Station Management) states:

(In relation to customer information boards)

You must display on customer information boards (where possible) information about any disruptions to:

• the train service
• ☒ any station facilities.

(In relation to station PA announcements)

You must make sure the following information is given to customers:

• train service details, including train destinations
• if the destination of a train is to be changed in any way
• advice on platform train interface safety
• ☒ details of any facilities that are not available
• customer flow and crowd control instructions (where appropriate)
• details of evacuation procedures (when needed).

In terms of what staff should do to ensure that a disabled person can complete their journey in the event of a lift going out of service, there are a range of options, and the appropriate option to use will depend on the particular circumstances.

Rule Book 9 (Lifts, escalators and moving walkways) states:

There are several options for discussion with a wheelchair user when a station is being evacuated or their planned route is no longer viable due to severe service disruption. These can include any combination of the following:

• boarding another accessible train
• using other step free access, if available
• waiting in a place of safety until the service resumes
• ☒ to be assisted up a moving escalator by two members of staff.

Wheelchairs are only permitted to be carried in the up direction on escalators at designated stations, with trained staff.

If an alternative route is to be used, you must confirm:

• the route is viable for the wheelchair user, and
• ☒ staff will be available along the journey, where needed.

I put a☒ against “to be assisted up a moving escalator” because I wasn’t offered that; I was simply told to catch the tube to Caledonian Road and a bus back and “there’s nothing else we can do.” Only when I mashed the emergency button until it broke did they pull the escalator option out of the hat.

The ‘Managing Customer Service’ part of the Operational Manager Handbook states:

You can book a special taxi, for example, in the following circumstances:

• operational requirements
• staff ill health issues
• for customers (for example, a customer taken ill or last train cancelled)
• ☒ for disabled customers if they are unable to use part of the network that is usually accessible to them

Information

• ☒ If a lift at a step-free station is out of order, it might be appropriate to arrange a special taxi to help a disabled customer make part or all of their journey

Taxis booked on an ad hoc basis are called ‘special taxis’ to differentiate them from scheduled taxis.

In relation to stairs, if the stairs are broken or obstructed such that they can’t be used and there is no alternative route, the station would be closed.

In relation to escalators, comparisons with lifts are difficult because often there is more than one escalator in the same direction in a bank, so it is rare that there will be no escalator access. However, the point about booking a special taxi applies.

The ‘Managing customer service’ part of the Customer Service Supervisors / Managers Handbook states:

Non-availability of step-free access

Information

☒ London Underground has a legal obligation to provide alternative transport to a disabled customer if transport which is usually accessible to that customer becomes inaccessible.

If a customer who needs step-free access cannot use a step-free station and therefore cannot reach their step-free destination for one of the following reasons:

• a lift is out of service
• there is a planned closure
• there is service disruption or a station closure (which means that a disabled customer would have a more difficulty continuing their journey)

or

• an escalator or lift is out of service resulting in a disabled person, who is normally able to use a station is no longer able to
• a disabled customer has experienced significant disruption to their journey (for example they were inadvertently sent to an inaccessible station and couldn’t alight)

☒ Make sure they are given help to plan an alternative accessible journey.

Check:

• ☒ whether there is a bus or a rail replacement bus service which will take them to a step-free station en route (where they can continue their journey) or to their destination or, and
• ☒ whether the bus is accessible for the customer
• ☒ the alternative station is accessible to them

Information

A blue wheelchair logo on the Tube map means that a wheelchair user can board or alight. A white wheelchair logo means they are unlikely to be able to board or alight.

☒If there is a single accessible bus journey to the customer’s destination or a step-free station en route advise them of this. If there is not a single accessible bus journey you should offer an unscheduled taxi to the nearest available step free station en route or to their final destination if it is more practical.

Information

☒ Disabled customers are likely to experience a much longer delay to their journey than non-disabled customers when using alternative routes, if this is the case consider using an unscheduled taxi.

Oh look

I never got to use the tick ☑ 🙂

But of course, this whole thing was caused by the Hand of Fate and by my irresponsibility; as noted basic causes were “Lift 6 out of service for door repair. Customer hadn’t bothered to check the TFL website before he travelled.”

I’m very sorry for the inconvenience I caused London Underground by my selfishness.

I traveled to Salford today, after my interesting time booking my trip to visit my Dad. I fully expected a lot to go wrong. Sadly, I was right.

Inventive placement of reserved sign in the wheelchair space

The TransPennine from Leeds to Manchester was OK, except that the hand-dryer in the toilet was non-functional. One of the two wheelchair spaces was reserved for me; the other one was unreserved and unoccupied – so despite TransPennine’s staff claiming otherwise, there evidently was no reason why they couldn’t and wouldn’t book me in.

TransPennine didn’t bother putting a “slot” for the Reserved ticket in their train wheelchair spaces. Every standard seat, yes – but not in the wheelchair spaces. So staff have to get inventive about how and where they affix the reservation card.

Failed assistance

At Manchester Victoria everything unraveled as usual. The assistance I had spent so long booking didn’t turn up to get me off the train. The TransPennine train guard got the ramp himself. I then wandered around Manchester Victoria in a disorganised and lost fashion until I found the connecting train for Salford. With still no assistance staff around, the dispatch staff deployed the ramp and helped me on board.

National Rail Enquiries’ station page for Salford Central station

Then the guard came. The dispatch staff had evidently told him I was intending to get off at Salford Central, cos he told me that it is not possible for wheelchair users to get off at Salford Central. He said the platform is too low and it makes the ramp from the train to the platform too steep for safety.

TransPennine Assisted Travel had happily booked assistance for me to travel to Salford Central in my wheelchair; they evidently didn’t think there is a problem. Neither does National Rail Enquiries, which blithely notes there’s ramped access to the ticket office and all platforms, and a ramp available to get on or off a train.

Staff at Manchester Vic commented that it was not good that TransPennine assistance staff didn’t know about the access problems at Salford. Man Vic staff had a conflab about how to get me where I needed to be. It’s a 2 minute train ride so shouldn’t take long, but my meeting was in 12 minutes time, and even though there was a set of accessible taxis waiting outside the station, Arriva Rail North would have to call in their contracted firm whom typically took 20 minutes just to turn up.

So they put me on a bus. They told me the bus would take me direct to the venue, but that wasn’t the case. I had no idea where I was or where I was going, so it’s a good job the (very helpful) station staff gave me a map.

In the end, I turned up at the meeting 20 minutes late, instead of 10 minutes early.

I phoned a manager at TransPennine Express, who had dealt with my complaint about my booking experience. He tried to sort out how I would get home again afterwards (for which I am grateful.) He attempted to get TransPennine to book a taxi for the first leg home. The result was that whilst I was in my meeting, I received several embarrassing missed calls. When I eventually answered the phone (despite my hearing loss), TransPennine’s assisted travel team told me that TransPennine wouldn’t pay for a taxi because Salford Central is run by Arriva Rail North. He also said there are not normally any access problems at Salford.

I had to phone the TransPennine manager again, and he attempted the taxi booking again.

All of these phone conversations took place during my 3 hour window in Salford, during my meeting and lunch with my Dad. So not only did I have my journeys disrupted, it interrupted and spoilt my day out.

Levitation required

Ramps at Salford Central

I arrived at Salford Central a few minutes early for the return journey, so I thought I’d see what the problem was. They’ve spent a lot on modernising the building with impressive Approved Document M compatible ramps and lifts throughout the station. However, when a train came in, I could immediately see the problem for wheelchair access.

A Pacer at Salford Central station

The warning on the platform edge says “Mind the Step“. I think it should say “Mind the Leap and the Bound” as well. That is one maHOOsive step.

It wasn’t just a problem for the hateful Pacer; it was the same with a Sprinter:

Pacer and Sprinter at Salford Central

The Sprinter’s floor is a little lower so it’s just at knee height and not the Pacer’s gonad height, but it’s still a significant height difference; and I would pity anybody (including me) attempting to push my bulk up a ramp onto it. (Sadly, when I became a wheelchair user the NHS had a temporary supply issue with jetpacks and their levitation therapist was off sick, so I missed those essential skills and equipment – and without it Salford Central station is pretty inaccessible.)

There are clear and undeniable problems that affect wheelchair access at Salford Central. Which leads me to question:

• Why wasn’t the platform sorted when the rest of the station was renovated?
• Why describe it as fully accessible when it isn’t?
• Why did TransPennine’s staff member deny there is an issue?

Taxis and toilets

It was a good job that TransPennine’s taxi turned up. It wasn’t comfortable; as a very tall person in a wheelchair accessible cab, I have to travel backwards whilst hunched over. Comfy – not.

Doug in an “Accessible” Taxi

The trials didn’t end there: there was of course no toilet in the taxi, and the toilet on the Transpennine was out-of-order, so I had to wait until I got to Leeds.

I was exhausted so I decided to spoil myself with a taxi home. What a wonderful welcome I received at Leeds Station Taxi Rank!

“Wheelchairs cross here”

This looked familiar from 2015…

Thank you @networkrail, I’ll cross there as instructed for my safety then. How? @FryLegal @transportforall @UnityLaw pic.twitter.com/L97CQ3CqNs

— Doug Paulley (@kingqueen3065) October 16, 2015

GETT booking history

I thought I’d wait a bit to see if anybody noticed it and sorted it out. But no, 2½ hours later, the cones were still there…

In the meantime I tried Gett. An app by which people in Leeds can book taxis. I recently asked Gett how I could book a wheelchair accessible taxi; they said to put my need in the “Notes for Drivers“.

Turns out that Gett drivers don’t bother reading the Notes. 4 drivers accepted the booking, then asked me to cancel when they realised I am a wheelchair user – one only when he turned up. When one of the previous four inaccessible cabs accepted my fifth attempt to book, I gave up.

The next time somebody says British public transport is effortlessly accessible…

tell them where to get off.

I want to visit my Dad at the People’s History Museum next Monday, so I phoned Transpennine Express’ assisted travel line to book tickets, the wheelchair space and assistance with ramps.

The call lasted two hours.

There are no advance tickets available. This immediately rang alarm bells: it is theoretically possible that all advance purchase tickets have already sold, but usually this is a sign that seat reservations on the train haven’t opened.

Inability to book a seat is a pain for Temporarily Able-Bodied people. But at least they can fight for any of the 179 seats on the train; or (less attractively) stand. Wheelchair users can only travel in one of the two wheelchair spaces. If there are already two wheelchair users on board, we can’t travel.

Being bumped onto a later train would be a major problem, because we have to book assistance and ramps to get on and off the train 24 hours in advance. If we change our schedule there’s no guarantee the message will get through or that staff will be available to assist us.

I quote below some of the ocean of fail I unleashed by daring to attempt to book that train:

Advisor: Outbound journey: no reservable seats on either of them journeys, so it would be down to the train crew to find you seat. Me: Northern rail is non-reservable I know, but I am surprised at the Transpennine from Leeds to Manchester Victoria being non-reservable. TP Express usually is.  Advisor: Yes, it’s saying not able to reserve any seats on that one.

Me: Okay. Well I’m not happy to travel without booking the wheelchair space. Please find out what is up and ask somebody to sort it? I know the wheelchair space isn’t reservable on Northern Rail but they are on TP Express. Advisor: Yes. It’s not letting us book it at all. No availability. It’s just showing no availability on our system. If you still want me to put the booking through, that would be down to you if you got there and the seats weren’t available.

Me: I want to know please whether it is a technical problem or if it is that both wheelchair spaces are already booked by other wheelchair users. Advisor: No not a technical problem, just cannot book any seats from Leeds to Manchester Victoria at all on our system. Me: No seats either? Not just the wheelchair space? Advisor: No, no seats at all, nothing.

Yet the Transpennine Express website states: “Reservations available“.

This makes me suspect that reservations are supposed to be available but aren’t available because of a fault.

Me: Please get on to whomever can find out why that train isn’t reservable, find out why it’s not reservable, get them to sort the problem so I can book the wheelchair space. Advisor: There is no way we can make the journey become available for booking when its showing no availability. … Nobody at Transpennine Express will be able to book you a seat on that particular journey because they all got the same system as me. Me: Why is it unreservable? Why have Transpennine made it unreservable? Advisor: It’s just a non reservable service on that train. We cannot reserve any seats on it at all. Me: I know. Why is it unreservable? Why have Transpennine made all the seats on that train unreservable? What’s the problem? Advisor: Some journeys are just like that cannot reserve seats on them. That’s just the way the booking system is. Me: That doesn’t answer. Why is that train unreservable? What is the problem? Advisor: There is no answer for that im afraid. It’s just that some services are unreservable.

I was thinking perhaps if there aren’t wheelchair users on it, and it’s just unreservable because of a cock-up, I could either persuade them to sort it out or chance it on the day.

The “discussion” went on for some time, until she passed me to her manager. I repeatedly asked him whether the wheelchair spaces are unavailable because they had already been booked by other people.  However the manager refused point-blank, for “data protection” reasons.

Me: She said the whole train is non-reservable; that’s clearly a problem your end because your own website says that seats are reservable. I want to know for definite whether it’s non-reservable due to some technical problem or because somebody your end has made the whole train non-reservable or if it is because the spaces are already gone. Manager: Okay, so all I will confirm at this point is that no availability on that train. Me: why is the train non-reservable? is it definitely the case that the wheelchair spaces are already reserved by wheelchair users? Manager: There is no availability for us to reserve any seats. Me: Why is the train non-reservable? Is it definitely the case that the wheelchair spaces are already reserved by wheelchair users? It’s a perfectly reasonable question to ask. Manager: I cannot give you travel details of other passengers on that train unfortunately. Me: You can find out though whether the wheelchair spaces will already be occupied. I don’t want travel details of other passengers on the train, I just want to be certain that this isn’t just due to some technical or booking failure that has made the whole train non-reservable when in fact the wheelchair spaces are not engaged. Manager: The spaces currently have no availability. We cannot share the details of other customers who have booked those spaces.

Me: At no point have I asked you to share the details of other passengers’ journeys. I just want you to tell me categorically that the wheelchair spaces are already occupied for the journey I would like to do. Manager: That would be passing on info in respect of other customers travel arrangements, therefore I cannot give it you. Me: No it wouldn’t, it would be simply telling me whether the spaces are reserved or not. If I phone up a cinema and try to book a wheelchair space, they tell me, the wheelchair space is free, or somebody has already reserved it, or they tell me there’s a tech problem that means they can’t reserve it or there’s some maintenance issue or something. Asking whether a wheelchair space is reserved or not is not asking for details of other customers travel arrangements. I just want to know whether the wheelchair space is showing as unavailable because the whole train has been made non-reservable or some other such problem, or if it is because they are occupied for part or all of the journey I want to do. That is not sharing anything about other passenger’s journeys.

He still refused. Manager: As I said earlier, I cannot confirm anything about other customers’ bookings or reservations, this will be a breach of their confidentiality. And later: Manager: I cannot give you info from other customers.

Other juicy bits:

Me: I would like to speak to your manager please. You can do that, what you mean is you will not, you are refusing. Manager: I will arrange for a call back from manager, which is normal process, however as this is Typetalk service I would be unable to arrange that with you.

Me: Your advisor earlier said that the whole service is non-reservable, that she is unable to book any seats at all, not just the wheelchair space. Manager: The rest of the train is really irrelevant because all we are talking about here is wheelchair space, unless you want to book a normal seat.  Me: If the whole train is unreservable then it’s clearly something that is up your end with the bookings. Is the whole train unreservable for some reason?

He never answered that either, though to be fair he did state categorically that there were no technical or organisational reasons why he would be unable to book the wheelchair spaces. Here’s the whole transcript with the exception of certain identifying details. (NB: I’ve cleaned the text relay output a lot but it’s still pretty hideous and inaccessible I’m afraid.)

Sometimes I think being disabled should come with a full-time secretary, solicitor and a baseball bat. (For relieving tensions on a baseball – I don’t do physical violence.)

I shall ask the Information Commissioner to assess this… unusual interpretation of approach to data protection.

I have little confidence that everything will go right on Monday. I am dreading it. I shall take careful note of the booking status of the spaces…

ADDENDUM the following day

This morning:

@bainesy1969 was @TPEassist. https://t.co/1GEt3sRFsl Response this am @SandraGreechan @tim2040 @sarahcummings @AmateurFOI @FOIkid @FoIManUK pic.twitter.com/fpzvwR8zXN

— Doug Paulley (@kingqueen3065) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 Translation: our training and knowledge management is inadequate but we’re going to punish a junior staff member anyway

— Miss IG Geek (@MissIG_Geek) March 21, 2017

This afternoon:

They’ve booked the wheelchair space. So the space evidently wasn’t booked by a wheelchair user and there evidently was a technical or organisational reason why they didn’t book it.

It gives the wheelchair space reservation, but still says “no seats reserverd”… still not confidence-inspiring.

Twitter reactions

@kingqueen3065 Don't be daft, wheelchair users all know each other. Saying that someone is using it automatically means you know who.

— Kriss (@christabel6) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @TPEassist Utter rubbish. They can't tell you personal details of person if it is booked but otherwise no problem.

— John Slater (@AmateurFOI) March 20, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @TPEassist Seriously? Either a space is available or it isn’t.I am assuming you were not asking for specific passenger info.

— Rachel George (@ordinaryhopes) March 21, 2017

1of2 @kingqueen3065 seems odd. Unless there is some chain by which being told that the reservation is for a wheelchair user leads to id

— FOI kid (@FOIkid) March 21, 2017

2of2 @kingqueen3065 of the traveller, this is nonsense. I cannot see such a chain. Sounds like a bot replying.i would write to them.

— FOI kid (@FOIkid) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 clearly bollocks. They’re not listening to you and just stonewalling. You were very clear.

— Natalya Dell (@natalyadell) March 21, 2017

@TPEassist @kingqueen3065 asked a perfectly reasonable question. He is not asking for passenger info. Was it booked or was there a problem?

— Rachel George (@ordinaryhopes) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @bainesy1969 @tim2040 @sarahcummings @AmateurFOI @FOIkid @FoIManUK that train is unaccessible to w/c users. Discrimination.

— Sandra Greechan (@SandraGreechan) March 20, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @bainesy1969 @tim2040 @sarahcummings @AmateurFOI @FOIkid @FoIManUK absolutely crazy…….

— Sandra Greechan (@SandraGreechan) March 20, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @SandraGreechan @tim2040 @sarahcummings @AmateurFOI @FOIkid @FoIManUK Arrant nonsense. Where is this from Doug?

— Jon Baines (@bainesy1969) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 Just wow….such obtuseness must be deliberate; surely no-one could be THAT stupid and unhelpful by accident!!

— Miss IG Geek (@MissIG_Geek) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @SandraGreechan @bainesy1969 @tim2040 @sarahcummings @AmateurFOI @FOIkid @FoIManUK A very stupid or very obstructive employee

— Chris Squirrelpot (@squirrelpot) March 21, 2017

@kingqueen3065 @TPEassist Due to Staff Confidentiality we cannot confirm that the train you are expecting has a driver ie will turn up !!

— Ghillie20 (@Ghillie20) March 21, 2017

@Retro_Kitty79 @kingqueen3065 I’m going to a cinema. I know one wheelchair space is taken (3 available) but not by whom. Not confidential.

— John Dunne ♿ (@safc4ever) March 21, 2017