Reported number of dog thefts from April 2018 to March 2023

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.23.031981

I note you seek access to the following information:

1. Please can you tell me the number of dog thefts reported to your force for each of the following financial years: 2018-19, 2019-2020, 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23?

2. If possible, please state the three most commonly stolen breeds of dog and the number of each taken?

3. Please can you tell me the number of charges there were for dog thefts brought against people in the years stated above?

4. If possible within the cost limit - how many of the dogs reported stolen in question 1 were found or recovered?

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 31(a)(b) - Law Enforcement
Section 40 (2)(3) - Personal Information

Reason for decision

Q3 - Please can you tell me the number of charges there were for dog thefts brought against people in the years stated above?

I can confirm that 30 people were Proceeded against for theft of a domestic Pet (Cat/Dog/Budgerigar etc.)

Information regarding People Proceeded Against with a Charge/Summons where a Domestic Pet (Cat/Dog/Budgerigar etc.) has been stolen between 1 April 2018 and 31 March 2023 has been withheld under Section 31 and Section 40 of the freedom of information Act.

Regarding any further information in relation to question 3, the MPS has applied the following exemptions.

Section 31(a)(b) - Law Enforcement - In this case, this exemption has been applied as disclosure of the information requested would prejudice areas within law enforcement such as the detection of crime and the apprehension or prosecution of offenders.

The MPS is charged with enforcing the law and preventing and detecting crime. Any information released under the Act which reveals information related to the gathering of intelligence and police strategies and tactics would prejudice the prevention and detection of crime and the apprehension or prosecution of offenders.

Release would have the effect of compromising law enforcement processes and would also hinder the ability of the MPS to fulfil its primary aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public.

Disclosure would technically be releasing sensitive operational information into the public domain which would enable those with the time, capacity and inclination to try and map strategies and tactics used by the MPS and possibly counter them, or become an intrusive hindrance to anyone involved in enquiries, which in turn could make people less likely to come forward as witnesses.

The disclosure of this information to the public by the MPS would undermine public trust in the MPS. Release of all information would allow those wishing to disrupt police operations to use the information to assist in evading detection should they be planning any unlawful acts.

I have determined that the disclosure of all the information relating to people proceeded against for theft in relation to question 3 would not be in the public interest.

Section 40 (2)(3) - Personal Information - information should be exempt if the question asked constitutes a request for personal information which is not the requestors.

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.

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

• Details of thefts, 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.

It should not be surmised that we are applying Sections 31 & 40 to the same pieces of information.

Disclosure

Q1 - Please can you tell me the number of dog thefts reported to your force for each of the following financial years: 2018-19, 2019-2020, 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23?

Q2 - If possible, please state the three most commonly stolen breeds of dog and the number of each taken?

Q4 - If possible within the cost limit - how many of the dogs reported stolen in question 1 were found or recovered?

Please see below the data in pursuant to your request for information.