Clerk to the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA
📧 Email: pacac@parliament.uk
Dear Members of the PACAC Committee,
Re: Complaint Regarding Conflict of Interest – Alex Ganotis (ICO Manager and Stockport Council Leader)
I write to submit a formal complaint for your urgent attention regarding a serious and sustained conflict of interest involving Mr. Alex Ganotis, who simultaneously held senior roles at both the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council (SMBC).
Mr. Ganotis reportedly: Worked for the ICO for over 20 years in a managerial and policy capacity.
Served for six years as an elected councillor at Stockport Council, including three years as Council Leader (2016–2019).
During this overlapping period, Stockport Council rejected numerous Freedom of Information (FOI) requests—many under section 14(1) of the FOIA using the Dransfield precedent. These rejections were often challenged at the ICO level, where Mr. Ganotis’ long-standing presence raises troubling questions about regulatory objectivity and fairness.
In particular, the late Mr. Robert Pickthall, a respected campaigner, was labelled vexatious by Stockport Council and denied transparency, even as he raised concerns over planning, finance, and child safeguarding. Several FOI complaints linked to SMBC during Mr. Ganotis’s tenure were dismissed or stonewalled by the ICO without clear justification.
I am requesting the following: That PACAC investigate the timeline and decision-making overlap between Mr. Ganotis’s ICO and SMBC roles.
That PACAC request the ICO to disclose any casework or decisions involving Stockport Council during Mr. Ganotis’s period in both positions.
That guidance be issued to prevent future dual office-holding where a regulator’s staff member also leads a regulated authority.
That retrospective review of dismissed FOI complaints against SMBC be conducted, particularly where section 14(1) was invoked.
This case cuts to the heart of public confidence in the independence of the ICO, and I urge your Committee to act with full transparency and accountability,
Yours sincerely,
Alan M Dransfield
Freedom of Information Advocate
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