Data on arrests, cost and resources for policing the Notting Hill Carnival in 2019 and 2022

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.22.026337

I note you seek access to the following information:

I would like to receive information regarding arrests at Notting Hill Carnival. Specifically, I would like to know:

1. Total number of arrests at Notting Hill Carnival for the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year)
2. Total arrests at Notting Hill Carnival for the following broken down by year, arresting offence and outcome of each arrest (i.e. charged, released without charge, caution, etc)
3. Total number of stabbings at Notting Hill Carnival for the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year and whether fatal or non-fatal)
4. Number of offensive weapons seized by police at Notting Hill Carnival in the following years: 2019 and 2022 broken down by year)
5. Total number of police officers injured at Notting Hill Carnival for the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year)
6. The total cost of the policing operation at Notting Hill Carnival for each of the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year)

Decision

I have today decided to disclose some of the requested information. Some data has been withheld as it is exempt from disclosure and therefore this response serves as a Refusal Notice under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) by virtue of the following exemptions:

Section 22(1)(a)(b)(c) - Information intended for future publication
Section 40(2)(3)&(4) – Personal Information

Reason for decision

Before I explain the reasons for the decisions I have made in relation to your request, I thought that it would be helpful if I outline the parameters set out by the Act within which a request for information can be answered. The Act creates a statutory right of access to information held by public authorities. A public authority in receipt of a request must, if permitted, confirm if the requested information is held by that public authority and, if so, then communicate that information to the applicant.

The right of access to information is not without exception and is subject to a number of exemptions which are designed to enable public authorities to withhold information that is not suitable for release. Importantly, the Act is designed to place information into the public domain, that is, once access to information is granted to one person under the Act, it is then considered public information and must be communicated to any individual should a request be received.

Section 40(2)(3)&(4) – Personal Information - Details of an investigation could cause an individual to be identified and is therefore exempted in this case.

Section 3 of the Data Protection Act 2018 confirms that information which relates to an identified or identifiable living individual is Personal Data.

The Freedom of Information Act provides an exemption for Personal Data and this is known as the section 40 exemption. Some of the information sought under your Freedom of Information request includes the following which we consider to be Personal Data

- Low numbers of offences, that could, if disclosed, identify an individual.

Where the request is seeking access to third party personal data the section 40(2) exemption may be engaged.

In order to apply the Section 40(2) exemption the disclosure of the requested information must satisfy either the first, second or third conditions as defined by subsections 3A, 3B and 4A of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (as amended by Section 58 of the Data Protection Act 2018).

The first condition ensures that the exemption would apply in circumstances where the disclosure of the information would breach any of the Data Protection Act 2018 principles.

There are six Data Protection principles set out in the 2018 act and these can be found at section 34.

In this instance I have decided that the disclosure of the Personal Data would be incompatible with the first Data Protection principle which states that the processing (in this case the disclosure) of the data must be both lawful and fair.

Section 22(1)(a)(b)(c) - Information intended for future publication - Early disclosure of information sharing agreements may lead to additional public funds needing to be spent to disclose information already intended for future publication.

The strongest reason favouring disclosure is the public interest in understanding and having insight of how the MPS manages resources. The strongest reason favouring non-disclosure is the need to ensure disclosure does not lead to inaccurate information being disclosed or an unnecessary increase in public funds needing to be spent to comply with this request in full when the information is already intended for future publication.

The total cost of the policing operation at Notting Hill Carnival for each of the following year: 2022 at this time as the MPS already intend to publish the information.

Disclosure

Q1 - Total number of arrests at Notting Hill Carnival for the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year)

Q2 - Total arrests at Notting Hill Carnival for the following broken down by year, arresting offence and outcome of each arrest (i.e. charged, released without charge, caution, etc)

MPS Response to questions 1 and 2

The harm of disclosure is reduced by redacting the low numbers of offences. This removes the possibility of a person being identified within the data, including self-identifying. See ‘Reason for decision’ Section 40(2) Personal Information

Offences	2019	2022
Assault Police	37	29
Robbery	9	Redacted Section 40
Criminal Damage	Redacted Section 40	5
Drink/Drug Drive		6
Theft Person		Redacted Section 40
Public Order	28	26
Off Weap / Points & Blades	34	33
Theft Going Equipped	10	0
Drugs	164	36
Sexual Offences	12	10
GBH	7	8
ABH / Common Assault	12	12
Psychoactive drugs	Redacted Section 40	10
Other	37	31
Total Arrests	354	209

 

Charge and remand	19
Charge and bail	35
Bails	40
RUI	20
Conditional Caution	Redacted Section 40
Caution	Redacted Section 40
NFA	32

No information is held for a further breakdown of each offence.

Arrest data for 2019 is already in the public domain:
Arrest at Notting Hill carnival in 2019

Please find attached a spreadsheet. The harm of disclosure is reduced by redacting the low numbers of offences. This removes the possibility of a person being identified within the data, including self-identifying. See ‘Reason for decision’ Section 40(2) Personal Information

Q3 - Total number of stabbings at Notting Hill Carnival for the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year and whether fatal or non-fatal)

7 stabbings in 2019 – 0 were fatal.
7 stabbings in 2022 - 1 was fatal.

Q4 - Number of offensive weapons seized by police at Notting Hill Carnival in the following years: 2019 and 2022 broken down by year)

I can only provide data for offensive weapon arrests.
Data such as weapons recovered/found on the footprint is not recorded.

Offensive Weapons	2019	2022
Points / Blades	34	33

Q5 - Total number of police officers injured at Notting Hill Carnival for the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year)

2022
Some officers who were assaulted may not have had lasting injuries and therefore would not be included in the data table attached. Some Officers will have been pushed or had other force used against them but had no injury. There were also some double counts within the initial data, this accounts for the difference in figures stated in the MPS news item.

Having reviewed the carnival information, it is recorded that although 74 officers were injured and assaulted during the Notting Hill Policing Operation, some of these assaults did not result in injury. Injuries to 60 officers are recorded on the corporate injury recording system as being sustained during the policing of Notting Hill Carnival.

2019
37 assaults on officers
There were 37 assaults on police, resulting in varying degrees of injuries to officers.

Q6 - The total cost of the policing operation at Notting Hill Carnival for each of the following years: 2019 and 2022 (broken down by year)

The total cost of the policing operation at Notting Hill Carnival 2022 is intended for publication in December 2022. Please see ‘Reason for decision’, Section22 (1)(a)(b)(c)(Information intended for future publication)

Cost data for 2019 is already in the public domain:
https://www.met.police.uk/SysSiteAssets/foi-media/metropolitan-police/disclosure_2020/november_2020/money-saved-from-the-cancellation-of-the-notting-hill-carnival-2020