FEBRUARY 2006
Scots embrace freedom of information The
Annual Report of the Scottish Information Commissioner,
publised 22 February 2006, says that the public has been
enthusiastic in using the new FOI law; some public authorities
fail to adequately respond to requests.
Read the report >>
JANUARY 2006
"Its Britain, so some doors are locked":
In two articles, Maurice Frankel of the Campaign for
Freedom of Information (CFOI) looks back on the first
year of FOI in the UK
"The good news is that we have a functioning Act which
has produced a substantial amount of previously undisclosed
information. Of course, plenty of requests have been refused.
But this is Britain: what did you expect? The greater surprise
is what has been disclosed. We have seen the Metropolitan
Police Commissioner’s letter proposing to block the
Independent Police Complaints Commission inquiry into the
Stockwell shooting. We now know that the PowerderJect pharmaceutical
firm, later owned by Labour minister Lord Drayson, failed
to tell the Department of Health that it was producing substandard
batches of BCG vaccine. The secret list of possible nuclear
waste disposal sites drawn up in the 1980s has been revealed.
Outside of central government there have been large numbers
of releases about food safety, parking fines, safety hazards,
violence in schools, expenses claims, contract costs and
numerous other issues."
Extract from Maurice Frankel, "Its Britain, so some
doors are locked," The Independent (31 December
2005). Read
full article >>
Maurice Frankel, "FOI - the first year," Press
Gazette (13 January 2006). Read
full article >>
Rob
Evans, "Fare disclosure,"The Guardian
(2 January 2006)
The Freedom of Information Act forced the
downfall of Scottish Tory leader David McLetchie over his
use of taxis, but what else has it revealed to the media
in the past year?
Rob
Evans, "Ask a silly question,"The Guardian
(4 January 2006)
Freedom of information is commonly thought
to be about important matters of state, but some people
evidently had other things on their mind.
DECEMBER 2005
REPORT: Information Tribunal’s early decisions lead
to greater openness The Information Tribunal, which hears appeals against
the Information Commissioner’s decisions under the
Freedom of Information Act, has issued its first three decisions.
Each of them advances the case for greater openness.
The
Freedom of Information Act was adopted in November 2000
after nearly 20 years of campaigning. (1)
The Act gives any person a right of access to information
held by a broad array of public authorities, which will
number over 100,000 when it is in full effect. State authorities
are required to respond within 20 working days.
•
Undernourished people (% of total population),
2000/03: N/A
•
Population with sustainable access to an improved
water source (%), 2002: N/A
Source:
UN Development Program, Human Development Reports
Data
There are three categories of exemptions.
Under the absolute exemption, court records, most personal
information, information relating to or from the security
services, information obtained under confidence, or information
protected under another law cannot be disclosed. Under the
"qualified class exemption," information can be
withheld if it is determined to be within a broad class
of exempted information. This includes information relating
to government policy formulation, safeguarding national
security, investigations, royal communications, legal privilege,
public safety or was received from a foreign government.
The third category is a more limited class exemption where
the government body must show prejudice to specified interests
to withhold information. This includes information relating
to defense, international relations, economy, crime prevention,
commercial interests, or information that would prejudice
the effective conduct of public affairs or inhibit the free
and frank provision of advice. A "public-interest test"
applies to the last two categories and provides that information
can be withheld only when the public interest in maintaining
the class or prejudice exemption outweighs the public interest
in disclosure. Decisions on the public-interest test can
be made beyond the Act's 20-day limit as long as it is within
a time period that is deemed "reasonable in the circumstances."
Public authorities are also required to
develop publication schemes which will provide information
about their structures and activities and categories of
information that will be automatically released.
The Information Commissioner oversees and
enforces the Act. (2)
The Commissioner has the power to receive complaints and
issue decisions. When the Commissioner orders the release
of information based on the public interest test, the decision
can be overruled by the Minister of the Department with
a ministerial certificate. Appeals of the Commissioner's
decisions are made to the Information Tribunal which can
also review and quash certificates on limited grounds. Appeals
of the Tribunal's decisions on points of law are made to
the High Court of Justice. The Commissioner also reviews
and approves publication schemes.
The Department of Constitutional Affairs
(formerly the Lord Chancellor's Department) is in charge
of implementing the act. (3)
It has developed a code of good practice, provides
advice and guidance, jointly runs an advisory group with
the Information Commissioner, and submits an annual report
on implementation to Parliament. In its most recent report,
the LCD identified 381 other pieces of legislation that
limit the right of access under the FOIA and has committed
to repealing or amending 97 of those laws and reviewing
a further 201. (4)
Implementation of the Act has been slow.
The government announced in November 2001 that the provisions
of the Act that allow citizens to demand information will
not go into force until January 2005. All national and local
departments will simultaneously provide access in a "big
bang," rather than in phases. The provisions on publication
schemes for central and local government bodies have gone
into force and are being phased in for other bodies over
the next year. (5)
Most organizations will adopt model schemes developed
with the approval of the Commissioner. The Commissioner
admitted in his 2002-03 annual report that standards for
the initial schemes were set low but will be raised when
the schemes are renewed.
The Hutton Inquiry into the death of a government
scientist following controversy over charges that the government
had mislead the public regarding Iraq has provided nearly
all documents on its web site.
(6) The documents have generated
considerable interest in FOI as they reveal the inner working
of the government and would not likely have been released
otherwise.
Until the FOIA goes into effect, a non-statutory
"Code of Practice on Access to Government Information"
provides some access to government records but has 15 broad
exemptions. Dissatisfied applicants can complain, via a
Member of Parliament to the Parliamentary Ombudsman if their
request is denied. (7)
In 2003, the Parliamentary Ombudsman threatened
to stop all investigations into the code after the government
refused to cooperate in one case and in two other cases,
including a question on conflicts of interest by ministers,
issued a certificate preventing the Ombudsman from investigating
on the grounds that releasing information "would be
prejudicial to the safety of the State or otherwise contrary
to the public interest." (8)
The Official Secrets Act 1989 criminalizes
the unauthorized release of government information by officials.
(9)
It has been frequently used against government
whistleblowers and the media for printing information relating
to the security services. The House of Lords ruled in 2002
that there is no public interest exemption to the act.
Under the Public Records Act, files that
are 30 years old are automatically released by the National
Archives. (10)
The UK signed the Aarhus Treaty in June
1998. The Environmental Information Regulations 1992 implement
the 1990 EU Directive on access to environmental information.
(11)
New Environmental Information Regulations
which implement the Aarhus Treaty and the 2003 EU Directive
are awaiting approval. (12)
Individuals can access and correct files
that contain personal information about themselves under
the Data Protection Act 1998. Appeals can be made to the
Information Commission or the courts. The Lord Chancellors
Department held a consultation in 2003 on expanding the
exemptions in the act after several prominent figures obtained
records under the Act which were embarrassing to the government.
(13)
The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act
was approved by the Scottish Parliament in May 2002. (14)
The law is considered somewhat stronger than the UK Act.
It has a stronger prejudice test for restricting information
and Ministers power to veto the Commissioner's decisions
is more limited. It will also go into effect in January
2005. The Welsh Assembly has adopted a Code of Practice
based on the UK code. (15) It requires
disclosure of information unless it would cause "substantial
harm" if it were released. However, the Welsh Assembly
has limited legislative powers.
The Local Government (Access to Information)
Act 1985 provides a right of access to "background
papers" about the policies and practices of local authorities.
(16) It also extended the number of meetings
of local authorities and some other public bodies which
are open to the public.
15
JULY 2005 "Secrecy without good reason is no longer an
option"
UK Information Commissioner releases Annual Report, reviews
progress under new FOIA The British Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)
released its Annual Report this week, assessing the effectiveness
of initial implementation of the new Freedom of Information,
both at the ICO and government-wide. Information Commissioner
Richard Thomas notes that since the Act's entry into force
in January 2005 he has witnessed "a spirit of greater
openness starting to change the culture of government at
all levels. Secrecy without good reason is no longer an
option." Read
more.
24
JUNE 2005
UK government departments received approximately 13,400
requests under new Freedom of Information Act during first
three months and processed 86%; FOI
advocates
cite "unacceptable delays" and "routine disregard"
for statutory procedures
The British Department for Constitutional Affairs today
released its first
quarterly report, providing statistics and commentary
on the implementation and use of the new Freedom of Information
Act during its first three months in force (January - March
2005). The report stated that 13,400 requests had been received
government-wide, 7,700 by the Departments of State. Eighty-two
percent of the requests were processed within the statutory
time limit and 86 percent have been processed overall. Of
the requests that received substantive responses, 56 percent
were granted in full, 13 percent were withheld in part,
and 18 percent were withheld in full.
The
Campaign for Freedom of Information, a non-profit organization
working to ensure effective implementation of the FOIA,
responded to the new report in a press
release issued today with a charge that the new government
statistics highlighted "unacceptable delays" and
showed that a "'disturbing' level of requests were
not being dealt with within the Act's time limits."
In addition, they cited significant variation in response
times among government departments; the Home Office, for
example, had the worst record, failing to acknowledge or
respond to requests within the 20-day time limit in 60%
of cases.
25
FEBRUARY 2004
UK: Charge Against GCHQ Whistleblower Dropped The
Telegraph (UK) reports that charges of disclosing information
against a British intelligence officer have been dropped.
Katharine Gun, 29, had been accused of leaking a memo on
an alleged American "dirty tricks" campaign. She
was charged under the Official Secrets Act of 1989, accused
of disclosing security and intelligence information.
The
prosecution said it would offer no evidence against her.
Miss Gun, of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, was sacked from
her job as a translator at the Government Communications
Headquarters, the security service's main monitoring centre,
in June last year.
She
was accused of disclosing a request allegedly from a US
National Security Agency official requesting help from British
Intelligence to tap the telephones of UN Security Council
delegates in the run-up to the war in Iraq.
Miss
Gun said at the time: "Any disclosures were justified
because they exposed illegality by the US, who tried to
subvert our security services."
1
JANUARY 2004
UK: Ministers to Retain Almost 150 Secrecy Laws The
Independent (UK) reports that
Ministers are to keep nearly 150 laws that deny the public
a right to information, according to an interim report on
a wide-ranging study that was intended to open up the Government
and its agencies to greater scrutiny.
Freedom
of information campaigners warned last night that the retention
of the "secrecy laws" showed that ministers and
their civil servants were still wedded to a culture of secrecy.
The review is part of a Government-wide initiative to repeal
laws that conflict with the new Freedom of Information Act
that comes into force on 1 January 2005 and gives everyone
a right to access information.
But
in a report seen by The Independent ministers say they want
to retain the right of non-disclosure in 147 pieces of legislation.
Ministers say they have not made up their minds on whether
an additional 70 pieces of legislation should also be added
to the list.
Yesterday
the Government's own information watchdog warned that while
many of these cases for denying access to information could
be justified in the public interest, a significant number
could not.
16
NOVEMBER 2003
UK: Britain's Official Secrets Act The
Guardian (UK) opines against Britain's
Official Secrets act, and its enforcement against Katharine
Gün, who was until last June a translator at the Government
Communication Headquarters.
Gün
was charged with the alleged disclosures of top-secret information
under the UK's Official Secrets Act. It has been reported
that the disclosures may relate to an article published
in the Guardian newspaper in March, revealing a secret attempt
by the United States to spy on delegations at the UN headquarters
in New York.
The
Observer showed that the Americans had asked British intelligence
to help in an illegal operation. The US wanted British assistance
in gathering information from countries whose votes were
needed for a second UN resolution to authorize war in Iraq.
20
OCTOBER 2003
UK: More People Seeking Information from the Government:
Report Epolitix.com
indicates that a report, released by the Department
for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), revealed
that while more people are formally seeking information
from the government, a higher number of requests are being
turned down.
There
were 5,212 recorded code requests in 2002 - a 12 per cent
increase on the 4,668 recorded code requests received in
2001, but less than the 5,969 requests received in 2000.
One in five requests were turned down - a three per cent
increase over the last year but a nine per cent reduction
compared to 1999. The most common reasons for refusing to
issue information concerned law enforcement, legal proceedings
or confidentiality of contacts with the royal household.
Most requests still come from individuals, MPs, peers and
the media, the report from the Information Rights Division
of the DCA found.
23
SEPTEMBER 2003
UK: The Guardian Newspaper Fights Gag Order The
Guardian Newspaper (United Kingdom)
has asked for a judicial review yesterday
of a ministerial gag imposed on the Information ombudsman,
Ann Abraham.
The
editor, Alan Rusbridger, said: "Most people assumed
that - in a post-Hutton world - the government would move
towards more openness, not less.
"Blocking
the release of this information will make voters question
the sincerity of the government's promises over transparency.
This will be an important test case for all journalists."
Ms
Abraham has been banned by ministers from disclosing information
in three Whitehall documents about ministers' conflicts
of interest.
In
his claim, lodged at the high court yesterday, the Guardian
reporter Rob Evans alleged that the unprecedented ban was
unlawful because it prevented the ombudsman in reaching
a decision on his case.
Evans
has been seeking for more than two years to exercise his
right under the government's so-called open access code
to obtain factual information about the occasions on which
Labour ministers' private interests and connections have
clashed with their jobs. Despite a series of appeals, he
has been repeatedly blocked by ministers themselves. When
he asked the ombudsman to investigate, she too found herself
thwarted.
The
Guardian's application for judicial review can be found
here.
7
JULY 2003
UK: Foreign Office Guilty in Secrecy Case
In a boost for freedom of information, the Foreign Office
has been found guilty of maladministration by the parliamentary
ombudsman. The
Guardian newspaper reports that the Foreign Office has
been condemned for unjustifiably keeping secret the names
of private firms whose executives are allowed to become
temporary diplomats in embassies abroad.
Officials
even claimed it would be too much work to collect the figures,
when they already had a list in their files, said the report
by the ombudsman, Ann Abraham.
Upholding
a complaint brought by the Guardian against Sir Michael
Jay, the Foreign Office permanent secretary, Ms Abraham
also condemned the department for failing to answer requests
within the time limits promised under a code which allows
the public access to government information.
It
took more than three months for the Foreign Office to respond
to the requests. Officials then refused to give out any
facts, saying that "it would require an unreasonable
diversion of resources".
But
when the ombudsman's investigator obtained internal papers
from Sir Michael he reported: "I was surprised to find
that much of the information sought ... had already been
put together."
3
JUNE 2003
UK: Officials Ignore FOI Vnunet.com
reports that almost one in three British government
departments do not yet know the deadline for the Freedom
of Information Act, even though 75 per cent are confident
of hitting it.
Research
conducted by The Stationery Office (TSO) found that three-quarters
of government departments have yet to set a budget for tackling
FOI compliance, even though most rank it as more important
than the 2005 e-government targets and second only behind
the Data Protection Act.
These
findings reflect concerns voiced last month by Information
Commissioner Richard Thomas suggesting that the public sector
is failing to take freedom of information seriously enough.
25
JUNE 2002
UK: Government Sets Penalties for Destroying Records
The British Lord Chancellor Derry Irvine has signaled that any officials found guilty
of violating the Data Protection Act by destroying any emails
or records they know to be requested by a member of the
public will be charged with a criminal offense.
Irvine's
move indicates that police officers, doctors, health and
court officials, Whitehall and local government civil servants
could face fines of up to £5,000 for "altering, erasing,
or defacing" records requested under the Data Protection
Act.
12.
DEFRA, Consultation on New Draft Environmental Information
Regulations on Public Access to Environmental Information.
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/consult/envinfo/.
See also Campaign for Freedom of Information, Response on
Draft Regulations.
13.
A Lord Chancellor's Department Consultation Paper Data Protection
Act 1998: Subject Access, October 2002. http://www.lcd.gov.uk/consult/foi/dpsacons.htm.
See Ashcroft memos may spur data law repeal, The Guardian,
5 February 2002; MP challenges secrecy culture, The Guardian,
27 June 2001.
1)
Voice and Accountability: 1.37
2) Political Instability and Violence: 0.77
3) Government Effectiveness: 1.85
4) Regulatory Burden: 1.62
5) Rule of Law: 1.71
6) Control of Corruption: 2.06
