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<p>Ministry of Defence (MOD) staff do the best they can within the given time available
to supply necessary information for Freedom of Information (FOI) requests and Parliamentary
Questions (PQs). Staff strive to ensure the information supplied is as accurate as
possible and, where inaccuracies or inconsistencies are later found, the Department
will set the record straight at the earliest opportunity. It must be recognised that
requests for large data sets, over many years, present a significant challenge to
locate, retrieve, and extract information, especially where such data is not collated
or held centrally and is dispersed among different branches of Defence. In cases where
FOI/PQs are made for historic information before the advent of widespread electronic
filing, this task is made yet harder where paper records need to be manually interrogated.
This can be further complicated by the time constraints imposed by the nature of such
requests. Where time is limited, in the case of Named Day PQs staff typically have
around one working day or less, it is not always possible for staff to ensure all
records are thoroughly reviewed and the total accuracy of the data supplied. In such
cases, estimates may be given. In the case of Question 61052, a Named Day Question,
MOD staff produced the best estimate possible within the time constraint the question
imposed. Having had the time to conduct a more thorough search and analysis in the
time since, MOD staff were able to supply revised and more detailed information in
response to Question 103509.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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