Section 81 — Freedom of Information Act 2000: Application to government departments, etc.

Application to government departments, etc. 81 1 For the purposes of this Act each government department is to be treated as a person separate from any other government department.

2 Subsection (1) does not enable—

a a government department which is not a Northern Ireland department to claim for the purposes of section 41(1)(b) that the disclosure of any information by it would constitute a breach of confidence actionable by any other government department (not being a Northern Ireland department), or b a Northern Ireland department to claim for those purposes that the disclosure of information by it would constitute a breach of confidence actionable by any other Northern Ireland department.

3 A government department or the Welsh Assembly Government is not liable to prosecution under this Act, but section 77 and paragraph 12 of Schedule 3 apply to a person in the public service of the Crown as they apply to any other person.

4 The provisions specified in subsection (3) also apply to a person acting on behalf of either House of Parliament or on behalf of the Northern Ireland Assembly or the National Assembly for Wales as they apply to any other person.