Business issues and FOI

FT.com 16th Jan -Throwing open a secretive world
"Such messages will be zapping around the country with greater urgency this week now that venture capitalists have got wind of an application under the new Freedom of Information Act that is aimed at throwing open the secretive world of UK private equity, as disclosure laws have in the US."

Chartered Institute of Building 17th Jan - Consultation compromise over export credit rules averts judicial review
"Though the ECGD for reasons of commercial confidentiality may have appeared to conduct its business in a secretive and untransparent manner as the NGOs allege, it is now like other government departments ready to conform to the requirements of the U.K. Freedom of Information Act which came into force on 2005-01-01. This legislation is intended to promote a culture of openness and accountability among public sector bodies, facilitating better understanding of how public authorities carry out their duties, the decisions they make and how they spend the taxpayers’ money. This should provide another rich field of inquiry for the NGOs."