Method of Entry (1987/20)
Request
How many times was Method of Entry (MOE), used in the financial year 2018/2019 (for the west Midlands force area), how many times was that a pre-planned operation, how many time was emergency entry with MOE kit?
Also how many officers are MOE trained if this is not operationally sensitive?
Response
Our data are not organised in such a way as to allow us to provide this information within the appropriate (cost) limit within the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act (see ‘Reason for Decision’ below).
Although excess cost removes the force’s obligations under the Freedom of Information Act, as a gesture of goodwill I have supplied information, relative to your request, retrieved before it was realised that the fees limit would be exceeded (see attached). I trust this is helpful, but it does not affect our legal right to rely on the fees regulations for the remainder of the request.
REASON FOR DECISION
Please note that researching each individual case would exceed the appropriate limit (FOIA, s.12). There are many reasons why MOE might be used to gain entry and even with a warrant, we would only record it as a forced entry which could include an officer kicking a door in and not the equipment used.
The cost of compliance with the whole of your request is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond, i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information would exceed the appropriate costs limit under section 12(1) of the FOI Act 2000. For West Midlands Police, the appropriate limit is set at £450, as prescribed by the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004, S.I. 3244.