To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 7 December 2009, Official Report, column 90W, on the Royal Air Force: military bases, what provision of the Data Protection Act 1999 governs the withholding of the name of each base commander requested in the question; and if he will make a statement. (309128)

In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 the names of the RAF commanders are classed as personal data. Section 1(1) of the Act defines 'personal data' as information which relate to a living individual, who can be identified from the data. The First Data Principle requires that personal data have to be processed fairly and lawfully and to allow disclosure have to meet one of the conditions contained in schedule 2. One of the conditions is the consent of the person. In cases where the individual's personal details have already been made public they would have had to provide consent, which would fulfil the first condition contained at schedule 2 to the Act.

The names of the Station Commanders for RAF Wyton, RAF Digby and RAF St. Mawgan were incorrectly omitted from the reply given on 7 December 2009, Official Report, column 90W due to an administrative error. Their names are shown as follows: