FOI 32-26: A request for information regarding EV chargers at Parliament Buildings
Information Standards Freedom of Information Response
Our ref: FOI 32-26
17 August 2026
Freedom of Information Act 2000
I am writing to confirm that the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission (Assembly Commission) has processed your request dated 3 June 2026 in line with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). Your request is as follows—
'Provide all communication or records which relates to the use or existence of the EV power points on the Stormont estate, including but not limited to
(A) the names of the person making the booking
(B) the names of the person benefiting from the free power
(C) the deleting of records pertaining to the bookings
(D) the policy relating to use of the EV power points
(E) reporting to HMRC about use of the EV points
(F) the total costs associated with the EV power points which provide free power to elected reps.
For (A) to (F), please provide data for each of the previous five years.
(G) who decided to continue to provide free charging to MLAs when the public started paying for on street EV chargers?'
Our response
To provide all information 'all communication or records which relates to the use or existence of the EV power points on the Stormont estate' would exceed the fees limit under section 12 of the FOIA and the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. We have answered the specific matters enumerated in your request as follows—
(A) The names of person making the booking
The names of MLAs who booked EV charging points during the period for which records are held are Robbie Butler MLA, Pam Cameron MLA, Trevor Clarke MLA and David Honeyford MLA.
Information on the use of the EV chargers by persons who are not MLAs (mainly Assembly Commission employees) is exempt from disclosure under section 40(2) of the FOIA. This provides that information is exempt information if it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is not the data subject and satisfies one of three conditions. 'Personal data' is defined by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).
The Assembly Commission is satisfied that the condition set out at section 40(3A)(a) of FOIA is satisfied in respect of the information withheld. The condition is that 'disclosure of the information to a member of the public otherwise than under this Act...would contravene any of the data protection principles...'
The data protection principles are set out at Article 5 of the UK GDPR. The first principle is that processing of personal data must be fair, lawful and transparent. Processing is 'lawful' under the first principle if it satisfies one or more of the conditions at Article 6 of the UK GDPR.
The provision of EV charging was a benefit made available by the Assembly Commission to its employees. This benefit is recognised by HMRC as exempt from tax and national insurance. There is no reasonable basis on which to disclose the names of employees who availed of a lawful employment benefit.
As regards other persons using the EV chargers who are neither Members nor Assembly Commission employees, the Assembly Commission can indicate that there are only two such individuals, each of whom work for Members or political parties. The Assembly Commission does not consider that to single out these individuals in this way would be either fair or lawful.
(B) The names of the persons benefiting from the free power
Booking information is held as set out at (A) above however no records exist on whether individuals actually benefited from free electricity or the amount of any such benefit.
(C) The deleting of records pertaining to the bookings
This information is exempt from disclosure on the basis that it is held with a view to future publication. A fact-finding review into (among other things) the timeline and approval to change the data retention period from 90 to 7 days is currently taking place. The Assembly Commission considers it reasonable in all the circumstances that the information should be withheld from disclosure until the review is completed. Further information about this review is available in the answer to AQW 49921/22-27.
(D) The policy relating to the use of the EV power points
The Assembly does not hold formal policies, guidance documents, or internal memoranda specifically governing MLA or staff use of EV charging points. Relevant internal publications are already publicly available in the Appendix to FOI 30-26.
(E) Reporting to HMRC about the use of the EV points
This information is already available in the published response to FOI 30-26.
(F) The total costs associated with the free EV power points which provide free power to elected reps
The EV charging infrastructure is not metered, and electricity consumption is not separately recorded from the wider building supply. As such, the Assembly Commission does not hold information on the cost of electricity supplied through the EV charging points. Further information on the costs of installing and maintaining EV chargers already publicly available in the published response to FOI 30-26.
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(G) Who decided to continue to provide free charging for MLAs when the public started paying for on street EV chargers?
This information is not held: there was no specific discussion of the matters set out in question (G) at either Assembly Commission or Senior Management meetings.
Further Information
You may request an internal review of this decision by the Assembly Commission. If you wish to request such a review, please write to me at the above address. If, after that review, you are dissatisfied with the way in which the Assembly Commission has handled your request for information, you may complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Your request for information and our response may be published in the disclosure log maintained by the Assembly Commission under a publication scheme agreed with the ICO. The request and our response will be anonymised.
Yours sincerely,
INFORMATION STANDARDS
