FOI - X (formally twitter) [Jul 2026]

I write to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 concerning the management of the official X (formerly Twitter) account operated on behalf of the Mayor of London, including any policy or practice relating to the disabling, restriction or limitation of public replies, comments or engagement. Unless otherwise stated, this request covers all recorded information held in any format, including emails, Microsoft Teams messages, instant messaging platforms used for official business, meeting minutes, briefing notes, draft documents, presentations, reports, governance records, metadata and document version histories. 

Please provide: 

1. Copies of all policies, guidance, protocols or standard operating procedures governing the management of the Mayor of London's official X account. 
2. Copies of any policy or guidance relating specifically to enabling, disabling, restricting or otherwise managing replies, comments, quote posts or other forms of public interaction. 
3. The date on which any decision was first made to disable or restrict replies or comments (whether permanently, temporarily or on specific posts). 
4. Copies of all documents recording that decision, including decision logs, briefing papers, submissions, recommendations and approvals. 
5. The rank, grade or role (not necessarily personal names) of every individual involved in proposing, reviewing, approving or implementing that decision. 
6. Copies of all emails, Microsoft Teams messages and other recorded communications discussing: whether replies should be disabled; whether comments should remain open; moderation strategy; public engagement strategy; reputational considerations; abuse directed at staff; misinformation; legal considerations; operational considerations; or any alternative options considered. 
7. Copies of any legal advice or legal briefing obtained regarding the decision, where disclosable. 
8. Copies of any equality impact assessments, public confidence assessments, reputational assessments or risk assessments prepared in relation to the decision. 
9. Copies of any communications with X (formerly Twitter) concerning comment settings, moderation tools or account functionality. 
10. Copies of any internal communications discussing public criticism or complaints relating to disabled or restricted replies. 
11. Confirmation of whether the decision applies: to every post; only certain categories of posts; only during particular events; or on a case-by-case basis. 
12. Copies of any review, audit or evaluation of the effectiveness of the policy. 
13. Copies of any statistics, reports or analysis used when deciding whether replies should remain disabled or restricted, including (where held): abusive reply volumes; moderation workload; engagement statistics; sentiment analysis; complaint volumes; security considerations. 
14. Copies of any communications between the Mayor's Office, the Greater London Authority Communications Team, external communications advisers or contractors concerning the operation of the X account. 
15. Copies of any communications with the Mayor or the Mayor's senior advisers concerning comment settings or public engagement on X. 
16. Copies of any media handling plans, communications strategies or social media strategies referring to reply moderation or comment restrictions. 
17. Copies of any records identifying occasions where replies were re-enabled, temporarily enabled or where exceptions to the policy were made. 
18. Copies of any complaints received from members of the public concerning disabled or restricted replies, together with any recorded responses or internal consideration of those complaints (with personal information appropriately redacted). 
19. Copies of any document schedule, register or index identifying records held concerning the management, moderation or governance of the Mayor's official X account.

Our response

The GLA does not hold a specific policy, guidance document, protocol or standard operating procedure governing the enabling, disabling or restriction of replies on the Mayor of London's X account. 

We do, however, hold broader guidance concerning the use of social media. This information is publicly available on our website: Greater London Authority's social media acceptable usage guidelines | London City Hall

The GLA does not hold recorded information relating to a decision to disable replies across all posts on the Mayor's X account. Accordingly, the GLA does not hold recorded information such as decision logs, briefing papers, recommendations, approvals, legal advice, impact assessments, risk assessments, reviews or audits relating to such a decision. 

The Mayor's X account is intended primarily as a channel for communicating information and messages of importance to Londoners. To ensure resources are focused on providing effective public services and engagement, the account is not routinely used to moderate or respond to individual comments.

The GLA encourages Londoners to contact us through the channels provided on our website: Contact City Hall or the Mayor | London City Hall. This enables enquiries, comments, suggestions and questions to be directed to the appropriate teams and responded to through the most suitable channels.

The GLA does not hold a policy, decision record or other documented guidance governing when replies should be enabled or disabled on the account. 

The GLA does not hold statistics, reports, analyses or other recorded information used to determine whether replies should be enabled, disabled or restricted. We therefore do not hold information relating to abusive reply volumes, moderation workload, engagement statistics, sentiment analysis, complaint volumes or security considerations for this purpose. 

The GLA does not hold copies of a document schedule, register or index identifying records held concerning the management, moderation or governance of the Mayor's official X account. 

The GLA does not maintain a separate record of complaints categorised specifically as relating to disabled or restricted replies on the Mayor's X account.