Media update

Guardian -Lord of Misrule has forgotten Spycatcher
"The move, according to the legal commentariat, is unprecedented. No previous Attorney-General has tried to throw the Official Secrets Act (section five) at the media before in the hope that what President Bush said to Prime Minister Blair about blasting the slats out of al-Jazeera is somehow off-limits, a secret too deep to whisper in public."

Guardian-France blamed MI6 for Rainbow Warrior
"The French government tried to blame the British intelligence service MI6 for the sinking of the Greenpeace flagship, the Rainbow Warrior, in a campaign of "misinformation and smears" that infuriated the Thatcher government, newly released documents have revealed."

Guardian - Child Support Agency forced to pay back wrongly accused men
"Figures released by the agency after a freedom of information request reveal that since 1998 3,034 men have been found to have been falsely accused by women of being the father out of 15,909 who have taken the test."

Guardian- Fuelhardy move
"He should also ask why HMRC has rejected - on grounds of "not being in the public interest" - a freedom of information request about the legal advice the department has received on whether pure vegetable oil should qualify for the lower biodiesel rate of duty."

Inside Housing-Authorities refuse to supply empty homes lists
"Councils are resisting attempts by developers to obtain lists of empty homes through the use of the Freedom of Information Act. The Empty Homes Agency has reported a surge of interest from commercial and individual developers keen to make use of the new act to pinpoint derelict properties suitable for refurbishment."

ICBirmingham - Residents in dark over soil danger
"A city MP has attacked Birmingham City Council over a lack of information given to residents living in homes built on contaminated land. Steve McCabe (Lab Hall Green) vowed to find answers to local people's concerns through the Freedom of Information Act."

TheLawyer -11 KBW launches information law group
"11 King's Bench Walk is launching a dedicated information law practice group. The group will be led by Timothy Pitt-Payne and will bring together the chambers' work in the fields of data protection, freedom of information, information sharing, privacy law and confidential information/ trade secrets."

Bush/Blair memo


I have an acknowledgement for my FOIA request for the Bush/Blair - "bombing of the al-Jazeera television" memo. Possibly the shortest reponse in terms of detail on record!

Survey on NHS FOI compliance

IT Software firm Sibilo have published a report they have comissioned from Centre for Research in Information Management in the University of Manchester. 40% of the NHS Trusts did not respond to the university's FOI request.

Read the survey report , also available in PDF format

On the back of this Sibilo have decide to give away their DataSmart solutions for free. - Read more about their rationale.

View the download page, I may try this myself at the University in our labs.

Note:The FOIA blog does not endorse this software product (or any others) and is merely reporting the information.

Further Tribunal decision

The Information Tribunal has published a further decision:

Paul Harper Vs Information Commissioner (Royal Mail) - appeal dismmissed. Read the full decision (PDF)

The Bridgnorth Council case (where the IC was overturned) I previously reported via a media report is now available as a decision in the tribunal webiste. Read the full decision(PDF)

Latest decision notices

Case Ref: FS50072204
Date: 17/11/05
Public Authority: Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
Summary: The complainant wrote to the DVLA on 4/1/05 to request information relating to the status of particular vehicles on the DVLA database. DVLA did not accept that the request required a response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000(the "Act") and instead used existing internal criteria for deciding whether the request should be honoured. Consequently, the complainant did not receive a response from DVLA as directed by the Act. Following the Commissioner's intervention the complainant received a response on 4/10/05.
Section of Act/EIR and Finding: FOI s.1 - Complaint Upheld, FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI s.17 - Complaint Upheld
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50072204



Case Ref: FS50076778
Date: 15/11/05
Public Authority: Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland)
Summary: The complainant requested information pertaining to costs incurred by the Planning Service in relation to an appeal and discontinuance notice. The Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland) provided some information, and following an internal review they provided further details. Following investigation, the Commissioner is satisfied that the Department of the Environment (NI) do not hold any further information. However as the Department of the Environment (NI) failed to provide all the information held at the time of the request within 20 working days they have breached section 10.
Section of Act/EIR and Finding: FOI s.1 - Complaint Not Upheld, FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50076778


Case Ref: FS50070856
Date: 09/11/05
Public Authority: Ministry of Defence (MoD)
Summary: The complainant requested the signature of a former serviceman from the MoD, who responded by stating that the signature was not held. The complainant disputed this statement and the Commissioner asked the MoD for further information to satisfy himself that the information was not held. The MoD provided such information and so the Commissioner did not uphold the complaint.
Section of the Act & Finding: FOI s.1 - Complaint Not Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50070856


Case Ref: FS50087463
Date: 09/11/05
Public Authority: Home Office
Summary: The complainant requested information relating to investigations carried out concerning the conduct of prison staff. As the Home Office failed to provide the information requested within 20 working days the Commissioner upholds this complaint. However the information was subsequently provided and so no further steps were identified.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50087463


Case Ref: FS50087462
Date: 09/11/05
Public Authority: Home Office
Summary: The complainant requested information on investigations carried out concerning the conduct of prison staff. There were two aspects to the complaint; that the request was not responded to within 20 working days and that the Home Office failed in their duty to provide advice and assistance. The Commissioner found that the Home Office did not respond to this request within 20 working days and, therefore, upheld this aspect of the complaint. When responding to this request, the Home Office only stated that to comply with the request would exceed the cost limit of £600 for central government and so the information requested would not be provided. As the Home Office did not help to refine the request and did not offer any information about their cost estimate the Commissioner believes that the Home Office failed in their duty to provide advice and assistance and so this aspect of the complaint is also upheld. The Commissioner has not required any further action by the Home Office in connection with these complaints because assistance has since been provided.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI s.16 - Complaint Upheld
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50087462


Case Ref: FS50072107
Date: 09/11/05
Public Authority: Home Office
Summary: The complainant requested information relating to investigations carried out into the conduct of prison staff. The complaints to the Information Commissioner were that the request was not responded to within 20 working days (section 10), that the Home Office stated incorrectly that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the central government cost limit of £600 (section 12) and that insufficient advice and assistance was offered (section 16). The decision of the Commissioner was that the request was not dealt with in time and that the Home Office failed to offer advice and assistance. As the Commissioner found that the Home Office applied the Act correctly when forming their cost estimate, this aspect of the complaint was not upheld.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI s.12 - Complaint Not Upheld, FOI s.16 - Complaint Upheld
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50072107


Case Ref: FS50074781
Date: 08/11/05
Public Authority: Ministry of Defence (MoD)
Summary: The complainant requested the logbooks of an ex-serviceman. There were two aspects to the complaint. Firstly, the complainant felt that the initial response by the MoD was ambiguous and did not comply with the duty to confirm or deny. The MoD confirmed both to the complainant and the Commissioner that the intention of their statement was to communicate a denial that the information was held. With regard to this aspect of the complaint, the Commissioner was satisfied that the MoD did comply with the Act. The second aspects to the complaint related to the veracity of the MoD's denial that the information was held. The MoD explained why the information was not held and the Commissioner was satisfied with the steps taken by the MoD to ascertain whether the information was held. The Decision Notice found that the MoD was not in breach of Section 1.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.1 - Complaint Not Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50074781

The BlackBerry is the new poisoned fruit

Article by Al Roberts: Ottawa Citizen, November 26,
"Technology has often been a boon for advocates of open government. But the ubiquitous BlackBerry is, from the point of view of transparency, a new poisoned fruit....This may place a heavy burden on busy employees. In September, I filed a request for all PIN-to-PIN messages sent or received during the past six months by Alex Himmelfarb, clerk of the Privy Council and Canada's top public servant. The answer: the department had no record of any of Himmelfarb's PIN-to-PIN messages in that period. I got a similar reply when I asked for the PIN-to-PIN messages of Alan Nymark, deputy minister of HRSDC, over the same six months."

Read the full article

Notices served by ICO/MP appeals

I recently made the following request to the ICO:

-Full details of all appeals (S50 FOIA applications for decisions) under the Freedom of Information Act made by Westminster MPs since January 2005
-Guidance for ICO staff in dealing with appeals by Westminster MPs
-Full details of all information notices (s51 FOIA) served on public authorities since January 2005
-Full details of all enforcement notices (S52 FOIA) served on public authorities since January 2005
-Full details of all practice recommendations (S48 FOIA) issued to public authorities since January 2005
-Full details of all preliminary decision notices (under S21 of the Freedom of Information Memorandum of Understanding) issued to public authorities since January 2005

The response:
"The spreadsheet lists details of appeals under s.50 of the Freedom of Information Act brought by MPs, Information Notices served, and Preliminary Decision notices served under the Memorandum of Understanding. The names of all complainants have been redacted. Referring to part two of your request, we do not have any guidance for ICO staff on dealing with appeals from MPs. In reference to parts five and six we have not served any Enforcement Notices or Practice Recommendations under the FOI Act."

-Download spreadsheet
-They also sent details of their review process

Some of this information will be discussed in two detailed papers next year, but I thought it was useful to put into the public domain now.

Some comments:

-It would seem unclear why so few preliminary decision notices have been issued when so many cases have been filed against central government and so few full few S50 decision notices have also been served.
-The power to use information notices has been rarely used (5 times) -is there too much acceptance of public authority claims related to circumstances surrounding a appeal? and is informal negiotiation taking place removing the need for many information notices to be served ?
-All these notices should be published in some form on the ICO site to offer a clear audit trail and show public authorities the ICO are willing to use all the powers in the FOIA
-No information notices have been served since April
-MPs' names have been witheld - in my view they are working in a public capacity and I will appeal this
-Why have no practices notices been formally issued and published? this would seem to be an excellent opportunity to spread best practice. I have since been told by another public authority that in correspondence the ICO are giving practice advice but not formally issuing notices. Whilst this might be suitable in some scenarios it seems a waste not to share and document these issues formally. I will be requesting this type of correspondence.
-It is suprising that 11 months in and over 1000 appeals made that not one enforcement notice has been issued
-I will appeal and ask for full details of the cases listed (e.g the actual requests)

I'm aware that some of the comments above may require further evidence to gain the full picture and I will be making further requests to the ICO.

Whilst I accept that the ICO has a tough job and wants to work in practical way to resolve cases I feel that 2006 will need to be the year that the ICO uses all powers available decisively.

New disclosure log

New log added to the index for Dorset County Council. Please do continue to send any new logs.

Official Secrets Act

The Guardian - Memo warning 'attack on press freedom'

The Guardian - Secrecy gag prompted by fear

Read the Offical Secrets Act1 1989
"Under section 5 it is an offence to have come into the possession of government information, or a document from a crown servant, if that person discloses it without lawful authority. The prosecution has to prove the disclosure was damaging."



Early Day Motion tabled in the House of Commons:

1084 AL-JAZEERA TELEVISION STATION
Mr Peter Kilfoyle
Lynne Jones
Jeremy Corbyn
Dr Ian Gibson
Paul Holmes
Bob Spink

"That this House notes recent reports that President Bush discussed with the Prime Minister the bombing of the al-Jazeera television station in Qatar; and calls on the Government to publish the record of this discussion."

I have made an FOI request to the Cabinet Office for the memo - I expect this to be a long drawn out process - but will be worth it on point of principle now much of the information is in the public domain.

Media update

The Times - We're paying for our art – but the price is a secret
"But no one is entitled to know how much Shawcross was paid for the temporary installation, even though the museum receives £15 million of taxpayers’ money each year. The trustees have twice turned down a request under the Freedom of Information Act to reveal the cost of housing the artwork. Richard Thomas, the Information Commissioner and guardian of the new Act, also refused to publish the figure. It appears that the fee earned by Mr Shawcross, 28, son of the authors William Shawcross and Marina Warner, is secret....The case will go before the Information Tribunal on December 16."

Butler Group blog - Free Information
"The Association of Technology Staffing Companies (ATSCo), which found that over 21,000 IT workers were given work permits allowing them to stay and work in the UK over the last 12 months. The statistics indicate that some 85% of these workers came from India, and also that in recent years the numbers of IT work permits being granted has sharply risen...ATSCo applied for the data underpinning the above findings through use of the Freedom of Information Act."

This is Money - Students struggle with £10,000 debt
"Emails released under the Freedom of Information Act show that UUK prevented the Higher Education Funding Council for England - a partner in commissioning the research - from publication earlier unless large sections were removed."

ICSolihull - Conviction rates 'vary by postcode'
"The Times reported rates of convictions for 12 categories of offences varied from a high of 92.9% in Warwickshire through to 76.6% in Bedfordshire. And, following a Freedom of Information Act request, the Criminal Prosecution Service (CPS) figures for September 2004 to August 2005 showed convictions for types of offences in England and Wales varied even more widely."

Daily Record - ROAD TOLL PLAN IS £9M DEAD END
"FAILED plans to bring in road tolls for Edinburgh cost taxpayers £9million. Last night the bill, revealed under the Freedom of Information Act, was branded a "disgraceful" waste of public money."

The lawyer.com -What effect does the Freedom of Information Act have on the Land Registry?

Daily Mail - Minister accused over TB jab
"Papers released under the Freedom of Information Act show his company knew that nine batches of its TB vaccine failed quality control checks but no-one alerted regulators or the NHS for nearly two years."

Express and Star (Dudley) - Schoolgirl birth pill shock
"A total of 130 schoolgirls in part of Dudley borough were given emergency contraception in the last 12 months, health service figures have revealed. And more than 40 under 17-year-olds had abortions, according to the Beacon and Castle Primary Care Trust, which covers the north of the borough, in records published under the Freedom of Information Act."

The Times - Justice by postcode: the lottery revealed
"A detailed analysis of the work of Britain’s prosecutors shows stark differences in conviction rates around the country for offences ranging from dangerous driving to murder. Data obtained by The Times under the Freedom of Information Act established that..."

Freedom of Information in the EU

Activist Walter Keim complained to the EU Commission about the lack of access to public documents in Germany. The EU Commission answered 14 July 2005:

"I would like to stress you that, if a person considers that his or her fundamental rights have been violated, the possibility of appealing to the European Court of Human Rights, after exhaustion of all domestic remedies, offers him or her garanteed protection as the ultimate means."

he has now filed a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights:

European Investment Bank

From Article 19: Memo on the European Investment Bank’s Public Disclosure Policy (Draft II) (download PDF)
"This Memorandum analyses the European Investment Bank’s (EIB) Public DisclosurenPolicy (Draft II) (draft Policy), released on 20 October 2005, for consistency with international and European standards regarding freedom of expression and the related right to information. The EIB first adopted an information disclosure policy in 1997 and this was amended in 2002. Another comprehensive review process is currently underway, and the documents analysed herein represent the EIB’s most recent thinking in this area."

FoI in the EU

From the Statewatch website:"The right to know or the right to try and find out? The need for an EU freedom of information law" By Ben Hayes.

Paper is based on a talk given to the “International Symposium of on Freedom of Information and Data Protection”, organised by the Brandenburg Data Protection Commissioners Office, Potsdam, 28-29 September 2005, and a seminar on “Getting inside the EU”, organised by Journalists@Yourservice and the European Journalism Centre, Brussels, 3-4 October 2005.

Download PDF

Costs relating to FoI requests

The recent IDEA study on FOI (conducted by UCL) estimated costs for processing each FoI request in local government were £345 (see figures P17 of the report). It is worth noting back to an original posting about costs from IDEA last year ("the cost of meeting a single request could be anywhere between £1400 - £4000 depending upon the complexity of the request based on evidence obtained from USA and Canada") and the response I received. This information was also picked up on the media. See Birmingham Mail article). The issue I had at the time was that the costs were merely listed as "research" without any reference to sources, methods of calculation or differences in overseas legislation. It projected a "cost heavy" image of FoI. It is good to see some valuable and viable research conducted to give a clearer picture.

New decision notices

Further decision notices listed. Worth noting the number appearing against the Home Office, though the ID cards cases have not been considered yet.

I am currently working on some research with another academic relating to decision notices (UK and Scotland) and hope to publish something here soon on the topic.


Case Ref: FS50069257
Date: 07/11/05
Public Authority: York Hospitals NHS Trust
Summary: The complainant requested information relating to a particular workplace grievance procedure. The request was refused under section 40 (personal information). The Commissioner decided that if the third party personal data(including that about individuals who had consented to information being disclosed to the complainant) was disclosed to the general public there would be a breach of the first data protection principle. Therefore the exemption provided by section 40(2) was applicable.
Section of Act & Finding: FOI s40 - Complaint Not Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50069257

Case Ref: FS50074781
Date: 08/11/05
Public Authority: Ministry of Defence (MoD)
Summary: The complainant requested the logbooks of an ex-serviceman. There were two aspects to the complaint. Firstly, the complainant felt that the initial response by the MoD was ambiguous and did not comply with the duty to confirm or deny. The MoD confirmed both to the complainant and the Commissioner that the intention of their statement was to communicate a denial that the information was held. With regard to this aspect of the complaint, the Commissioner was satisfied that the MoD did comply with the Act. The second aspects to the complaint related to the veracity of the MoD's denial that the information was held. The MoD explained why the information was not held and the Commissioner was satisfied with the steps taken by the MoD to ascertain whether the information was held. The Decision Notice found that the MoD was not in breach of Section 1.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.1 - Complaint Not Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50074781

Case Ref: FS50072107
Date: 09/11/05
Public Authority: Home Office
Summary: The complainant requested information relating to investigations carried out into the conduct of prison staff. The complaints to the Information Commissioner were that the request was not responded to within 20 working days (section 10), that the Home Office stated incorrectly that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the central government cost limit of £600 (section 12) and that insufficient advice and assistance was offeres(section 16). The decision of the Commissioner was that the request was not dealt with in time and that the Home Office failed to offer advice and assistance. As the Commissioner found that the Home Office applied the Act
correctly when forming their cost estimate, this aspect of the complaint was not upheld.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI s.12 - Complaint
Not Upheld, FOI s.16 - Complaint Upheld
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50072107


Case Ref: FS50087462
Date: 09/11/05
Public Authority: Home Office
Summary: The complainant requested information on investigations carried out concerning the conduct of prison staff. There were two aspects to the complaint; that the request was not responded to within 20 working days and that the Home Office failed in their duty to provide advice and assistance. The Commissioner found that the Home Office did not respond to this request within 20 working days and, therefore, upheld this aspect of the complaint. When responding to this request, the Home Office only stated that to comply with the request would exceed the cost limit of £600 for central government and so the information requested would not be provided. As the Home Office did not help to refine the request and did not offer any information about their cost estimate the Commissioner believes that the Home Office failed in their duty to provide advice and assistance and so this aspect of the complaint is also upheld. The Commissioner has not required any further
action by the Home Office in connection with these complaints because assistance
has since been provided.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI s.16 - Complaint
Upheld
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50087462

Case Ref: FER0067951
Date: 02/11/05
Public Authority: London Borough of Bromley
Summary: The Complainant requested information regarding representations and objections to a Definite Map Modification Order. The Council disclosed a large number of documents but the Complainant alleged the Council was still withholding some documents. The Commissioner is satisfied with the Council's assurances that they do not hold any further information and that therefore they have satisfied r.5 of the EIR. Section of Act/EIR & Finding: EIR r.5 - Complaint Not Upheld.
of Decision Notice FER0067951Full Transcript

Media roundup

Daily Telegraph - Labour's 'dirty tricks' over secret Cameron dossier
"The Government was accused of waging a "dirty tricks" campaign last night over a potentially explosive file on David Cameron's personal life....Allies of Mr Cameron cried foul after the Treasury issued an unprecedented statement revealing that it held sensitive security information on the Tory leadership front-runner. Officials said the information was compiled when Mr Cameron was recruited as a special adviser to the Conservative chancellor Norman Lamont in 1992.The existence of the file was revealed in an unusually detailed response to a Freedom of Information request by The Sunday Telegraph."

The Observer - The BBC, Emin and a bill for £60,000
"The BBC faced embarrassment last night after internal emails revealed that it 'invented' a reason to explain to critics of why the corporation spent £60,000 of licence fee money on a sculpture by Tracey Emin.....The corporation decided it would reveal the price paid to Emin, because it believed it would have to do so anyway under the Freedom of Information Act. Its decision has now set a precedent that is threatening to blow the lid on the art world's most closely guarded secret: how much a public gallery pays for a modern work of art."

Daily Mail- Public inquiry call over TB jabs
"The firm finally had its licence to produce the BCG vaccine suspended when the fault was discovered in October 2000. The problems are detailed in a report from the Medicines Control Agency (now the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority) obtained under the Freedom of Information Act."

Yorkshire Post -Veterans claim evidence of 'guinea pig' vaccine trials
"Now a document released under the Freedom of Information Act has backed up their claims that they were given double doses of anthrax vaccines as well as unlicensed boosters."

The Guardian - Vice-chancellors 'ordered cuts' in fees report
"University leaders have been accused of suppressing the publication of a report on student funding in a bid to prevent criticisms of the government's plans to introduce higher fees....According to documents obtained by the Times Higher Education Supplement under the Freedom of Information Act, Universities UK, the vice-chancellor's group that commissioned the research with the funding council Hefce, ordered wide-ranging cuts of "politically contentious" sections of the study to "minimise negative publicity" on the issue over the past year."

Cambridgeshire Evening News - 'Scores on doors' ratings for cafes
"The council is one of only a handful nationwide to introduce the scheme and within the next few years every food outlet will have its ratings on the council's website. It is not compulsory for premises to display their star ratings, but Coun Daphne Spink, environmental health portfolio holder, said she hoped this will eventually become a legal requirement, as in other European countries."

Western Daily Press - COVER-UP ALLEGED OVER VITAL HOSPITAL DECISION
"The Government has refused to give details of why the Health Secretary took the decision not to refer the decision to downgrade Frenchay Hospital to an independent panel. Campaigners used the Freedom of Information Act to ask to see documents revealing the advice Patricia Hewitt was given before her refusal to refer the downsizing of Frenchay to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel."

Hamstead and Highgate Express - Met launches search for new station
"The information, obtained by campaigner Ed Fordham, has prompted fears that the Grade-II listed police station on Rosslyn Hill will be sold off to swell Met coffers. Mr Fordham gained a copy of a Metropolitan Police Property Services report this week under the Freedom of Information Act."

Information Commissioner's Office - Annual Track Research

The Annual Track Research was published today on the ICO website, interestingly (perhaps an indication of priorities?) the press release makes no mention of FoI.

-Press release (PDF)
"Protecting personal information is now ranked as one of the top three most socially important issues, according to new research published by the Information Commissioner, Richard Thomas, today. Delivering the annual Steele Raymond Lecture (“Taking Information Rights Seriously”) at Bournemouth University, Mr. Thomas highlighted findings from the research, which show that “protecting people’s personal information” was ranked behind crime prevention and improving education standards as an issue of concern, alongside the NHS and ahead of equal rights, freedom of speech, national security and environmental issues."

-Annual track research 2005 (individuals)PDF

-Annual track research 2005 (organisations) PDF

Justice: The Freedom of Information Act Conference 2005

Wednesday 7th December 2005
Pinsent Masons, 30 Aylesbury Street, London EC1R 0ER

Organised by JUSTICE and Sweet & Maxwell

Law Society / Bar Council CPD hours: 6
Standard fee: £295 plus VAT. 10% discount for JUSTICE members

Lessons from the Act's first year - leading experts present the latest thinking on how the Act is working in practice:

The enforcement process in action
Decisions of the Information Commissioner
How organisations are using the Act
Data protection, press freedom, commercially-sensitive information
Lessons for users, public authorities and third parties
Keynote speaker: Lord Justice Sedley, Lord Justice of Appeal

Plenary session speakers:
Phillip Coppell, 4-5 Gray's Inn Square
Maurice Frankel, Director, Campaign for Freedom of Information
Andrew Lidbetter, Partner, Herbert Smith
John Macdonald QC, New Square Chambers
Claire Moriarty, Constitution Director, Department for Constitutional Affairs
Timothy Pitt-Payne, 11 King's Bench Walk

view full details

How to measure openess?

Taken from freedominfo.org, valuable overview of reports and studies on this complex topic.

Towards an International Index
"International freedom of information advocates face a daunting challenge in quantifying and evaluating government openness and access to information in different nations. A wide range of researchers have pioneered the development of indexes for measuring and assessing openness around the globe. Today's posting lays out some of the options that are now available to tackle this important problem. In doing so, freedominfo.org hopes to begin a conversation that can lead to productive contributions and a consensus on quantifying the successes and failures of freedom of information around the world."

Media roundup

BBC news -Blair's local denied late licence
"But, according to documents obtained by the Conservatives under the Freedom of Information Act, the police and environmental health officials advised against granting the licence extension."

Norwich Evening News - N&N staff act to stamp out blunders
"A Freedom of Information (FoI) request has revealed more than 60 mistakes made by staff caring for patients at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (N&N) during the past two years."

Outlaw.com - Freedom of Information – six months on
"Local authorities in England received 35,406 requests under the Freedom of Information Act in the first six months of the Act’s operation, and have handled implementation without serious problems, according to a recent survey."

Birmingham Mercury- SCHOOLS' truancy shame revealed
"The DfES had refused to name the 146 schools it was targeting. But using the Freedom of Information Act, The Birmingham Post has discovered eight of them are in the West Midlands."

Belfast Telegraph -FREEDOM Act brings risks
"Almost one year into the operation of the Freedom of Information Act businesses are becoming increasingly alive to the opportunities, as well as the risks, created by the Act and its introduction of a general right of access for any person to information held by public authorities, including government departments and local authorities."

Western Mail - Airport challenged to reveal its plans
"Using specialist lawyers, Friends of the Earth is challenging Cardiff Airport's claim that because it is owned by a private company, it is not covered by the Freedom of Information Act."

The Sun - Fury over gipsy tax bill
"The number of unauthorised sites has soared to 4,264 since Labour came to power — up 38 per cent. But councils must still provide travellers with schooling, social services and waste collection. The figures — obtained by the Tories under the Freedom of Information Act — will anger residents whose lives have been blighted by the camps."


Managing Information - VOLUNTARY Sector Using Freedom of Information Act
"The Freedom of Information Act is being used extensively by voluntary and community organisations (VCOs) in the first six months of its life, according to new research by Ashridge Business School and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO."

*Download the full report (PDF)

Media bulletin - Commercial radio fights for BBC budget disclosure
"Commercial radio is battling to get the BBC to release information about its radio programming and marketing budgets before spring, its last chance to argue against the BBC's request for a big licence fee increase.The Information Commissioner has been brought in to the fight by the Commercial Radio Companies Association, after the BBC declined to agree to its request for information.

News-Medical.net -New Scientist reports on nuclear accident responsiveness
"In response to a request from New Scientist under the Freedom of Information Act, the MoD released post-mortems of four exercises conducted during the past decade . They reveal that delays in issuing public warnings, poor monitoring of radiation and breakdown in communication could all have increased people's exposure to radiation."


US FOIA
Washington Post - Secrecy Is Infectious: Bill Would Shield Biomedical Research
"The North Carolina Republican has introduced legislation to create the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Agency, a new bureaucracy that would help spur research and development of drugs and vaccines to blunt the impact of a pandemic or bioterrorist attack. The agency, to be part of the Department of Health and Human Services, would get something no other agency has: a full exemption from the Freedom of Information Act."

Information tribunal

The information tribunal site now contains full text of the "Mr E A Barber v The Information Commissioner" case, I previously mentioned this a few weeks ago. The case concerns the Inland Revenue.

Decision
"The Tribunal is minded to substitute a different Decision Notice. However in view of Mr Barber s subsequent request under FOIA, which has resulted in Mr Barber receiving information from the Inland Revenue, the Tribunal has decided to adjourn the hearing so as to allow the Information Commissioner, with the help of Mr Barber, to review all the information already provided to Mr Barber by the Inland Revenue and consider, in the light of the information already provided to Mr Barber,what further information, if any, could still be provided by the Inland Revenue, in order for them to comply with the original FOI request, the subject of this appeal. The Respondent should then report back his findings to the Tribunal, including details of the information already provided to Mr Barber, by 6 January 2006. In the light of the report the Tribunal will then substitute an appropriate Decision Notice."

Worth reading through in full....

This section is interesting:
"5. Under s.1(1) FOIA there is no definition of a valid or effective request as such. The only provision is that any person making a request for information to a public authority is entitled to be informed by the public authority whether it holds information of the description specified in the request. There is no restriction on what that description might be. However, where the public authority cannot easily identify the information then s.1(3) provides a mechanism whereby the authority can seek to clarify the request and if this further information is not supplied then the authority is not obliged to comply with the request. There is no evidence that the Inland Revenue exercised this right under s.1(3).".......We find that Mr Barber had a genuine and unfulfilled requirement to know what actions had taken place in relation to the prioritising of refunds of overpaid tax. This we consider was an integral part of the initial request by Mr Barber which the Inland Revenue should have been able to determine from Mr Barber's three letters in February 2005. As a result we find the Commissioner was wrong in law to find that the Inland Revenue have no information to provide in response to his request."

This is the second time the IC decision has in effect been overturned (also see the first ruling for Bridgnorth Council)

Also worth noting the next hearing is listed on the tribunal site: "John Connor Press Associates Ltd v The ICO", 16/12/05 10.00am at Procession House, 110 New Bridge Street , London , EC4V 6JL. Relates to this decision notice: Case Ref: FS50063478, Date: 20/6/05, Public Authority: National Maritime Museum ('NMM')

CILIP Career developmenty group seminar

Career Development Group (London and South East Divisions)
Management Seminar: FOI & Data Protection with John Miller (MoD)

Wednesday 7th December 2005
6 - 8 pm
King's College London

Cost: £15 CDG members, £35 all 3 seminars; £20 non-members, £47 for 3 seminars; £10 students and unwaged, £20 for 3 seminars

More details (scroll down to bottom of page)

Montenegro Passes a Law on Free Access to Information

After two years of hesitation and stalling, Montenegro Parliament adopted the Law on Free Access to Information. The Law needed absolute majority of the total number of seats in the Parliament, and was supported by 38 MPs, 13 voted against and one MP abstained from voting.

Read more

Standard Police Responses to ALL 08xx Police FOIs

An FOI Officer has leaked some interesting information about the above requests:

"It should be noted that [NAME OF POLICE FORCE] considers that this subject is now classified as vexatious under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

Any requests on the subject will be refused using the Section 14 exemption. This exemption applies where the day-to-day functions of a public body, in particular its ability to manage the work that arises from its obligation to comply with the FOIA, are undermined by a number of apparently obsessive requests and the pursuit of continuing associated correspondence."

Read more

This runs against guidance from IC and DCA: subjects are not classed as vexatious only requests

IDEA report

Thanks to Sarah at UCL for alerting me to this:


"At the end of June 2005, the Freedom of Information Act 2000 had been fully in force for six months. In order to understand how local authorities were coping with FOI compliance, the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) commissioned the Constitution Unit to carry out a study about local authority FOI practitioners' experiences responding to FOI requests and handling other compliance matters. The report was completed on 30 September 2005. IDeA intends to use the analysis of the results as a basis for guidance to authorities on making their FOI request response processes more efficient and effective."

The full report is available on the IDeA's web site. To access the report in
PDF format, please click here

FOI and Commercial Confidentiality Workshop

Act Now Training are running a workshop on FOI and commercial confidentiality next week in York (17th November).

Commercially sensitive information is one of the main areas for FOI requests. This workshop is designed to allow delegates to explore this issue thoroughly using plenty of case studies and group discussions. The latest caselaw and Information Commissioner’s decisions will be examined. We will also discuss cases from other jurisdictions including Australia and the Republic of Ireland.


Full details and online booking on our website (www.actnow.org.uk)

Media update

Birmingham Post - Nanjing in Rover talks
"Two inspectors were appointed - Guy Newey QC, a former DTI investigator, and Gervase MacGregor, head of forensic accounting at accountancy firm BDO Stoy Hayward. Figures revealed under the Freedom of Information Act show that Mr MacGregor and BDO Stoy Hayward, lodged a £1.09 million bill, including VAT, for the three months work to August 31."

The Guardian - Soas sells off arms shares
"The School of Oriental and African Studies (Soas) announced today that it was selling all its investments in arms companies.....Disinvestment campaigns have been started at Oxford, Cambridge and Swansea after CAAT published details of arms share holdings by 67 universities under the Freedom of Information Act.The issue was taken up by lecturers at Soas and the school's investment committee decided to dispose of its 62,000 shares in Smiths Group, Cobham and GKN."

Wales on Sunday - Papers reveal £49m of medical mishaps
"Today, Wales on Sunday reveals a catalogue of medical mishaps which have hit our wards, including patients being given the wrong treatment, medicine and test results and being injured during the course of an operation. Other blunders include blood transfusion boobs, patients given medicine to which they are allergic and some having wrong blood type transfusions. The non-life threatening errors, listed on papers obtained by Wales on Sunday under the Freedom of Information Act, comes two months after we told how hospital mistakes in Wales had cost taxpayers £49m in two years."

Independent - Deepcut: Four recruits dead and now new claims of degrading treatment
"...the Army's own inquiry have not been given to Mr McGregor. He had to
request medical records under the Freedom of Information Act."

Sunday Times Scotland - Hoard of school weapons seized
"Official figures obtained by The Sunday Times under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that Scotland’s classrooms and playgrounds are rife with weapons ranging from claw hammers and knuckle-dusters to martial arts implements and knives."

Wales on Sunday - Beeb cab bill fury
"Figures released to Wales on Sunday under the Freedom of Information Act reveal the BBC spent £192,000 on taxis for guests and staff in 2002/3, £188,000 the following year and a huge £236,000 last year, a 20 per cent rise on the previous year."

The Guardian - Law-breakers in the library
"Internal Middlesex documents, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the Guardian, reveal Shilson received a letter from the deputy vice-chancellor, Terry Butland, confirming that his suspension had been downgraded to two penalty points, "in recognition of the fact that you did not carry out the legitimate requests of the vice-chancellor". In the disciplinary code, two penalty points amount to a "serious warning", and are awarded for offences such as petty theft, harassment and making false allegations against the university."

Stroud News and journal - Report lifts lid on toxic danger
"The SNJ has demanded access to a top-level report under the Freedom of Information Act which has revealed the site is currently contaminated with arsenic, hydrocarbons and radium. Aston Down was used to dismantle surplus RAF equipment after World War II and test equipment from Australian nuclear testing was also stored at the site."

Mansfield today - 3,000 used needles dumped every week
"The shock figures, which are revealed under the Freedom of Information Act, show the town's needle exchange programme hands out about 10,000 needles every seven days –– but collects around 3,000 less.
Now council chiefs in Mansfield are demanding action after Chad presented them with the figures relating to the number of needles issued and returned during six weeks in September and last month."

Daily Telegraph - MoD comes under fire for discrimination against small firms
"The Ministry of Defence appears to discriminate against small firms when tendering for contracts, files released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal."

Information Commissioner's Office Case Decisions

UCL Constitution Unit have developed a useful breakdown of the ICO decision notices by sections of the FOIA.

FOI User group

I've made some enquiries about the user group the DCA are setting up, membership is fixed at present and it seems hard to find out if there is an application process. So far I've been told: "Membership for the User Group is fixed for the moment. However, vacancies will arise in the future."

I've received the following after a request:

-Letter explaining about the group::user_letter.doc

-Terms of Reference: user_tor.doc

Contrast this to the Scottish approach

As a point of comparison Ireland have several networks for users.

News from the Scottish ICO

-The Commissioner has published guidance on the section 38 exemption (personal data): Read more .

-The list of cases currently being investigated by the Commissioner has been updated on the Commissioner's website. There are currently 379 cases being investigated by the Commissioner. The list of cases can be viewed here

-The Commissioner produces a quarterly review of progress against his operational plan. The report for July to September is available on the Commissioner's website.

Latest decision notice

ICO website
Case Ref: FER0067951
Date: 02/11/05
Public Authority: London Borough of Bromley
Summary: The Complainant requested information regarding representations and objections to a Definite Map Modification Order. The Council disclosed a large number of documents but the Complainant alleged the Council was still withholding some documents. The Commissioner is satisfied with the Council's assurances that they do not hold any further information and that therefore they have satisfied r.5 of the EIR.
Section of Act/EIR and finding: EIR r.5 - Complaint Not Upheld.

Campaign for FOI - training

The Campaign for Freedom of Information is holding two further training courses in London on 14 December 2005 and 26 January 2006 to help campaigners, journalists and others make effective use of the Freedom of Information Act.

Although primarily aimed at users, the courses are open to public authorities and others who may find that it widens their perspective as well as providing practical guidance on the legislation.


Further information

Media use figures

A few people have asked for some updated figures on coverage of the Freedom of Information Act so far by UK National newspapers. Figures are produced from analysis of the newspapers using a sepcialist full text database. The search was for articles that contained the phrase "freedom of information act"

The number of FOI stories in UK Press mentioning the phrase "Freedom of Information Act" by month:

-January 2005: 175
-February 2005: 264
-March 2005: 198
-April 2005: 90
-May 2005: 90
-June 2005: 92
-July 2005: 78
-August 2005: 82
-September 2005: 72
-October 2005: 91

By newspaper:

-Daily Mail: 120
-Daily Star: 13
-Daily Telegraph: 83
-Express: 83
-FT: 80
-Guardian: 174
-Independent: 129
-Independent on Sunday: 34
-Mail on Sunday: 39
-Mirror: 66
-News of the World: 28
-Observer: 35
-People: 7
-The Sun: 32
-Sunday Express: 27
-Sunday Mirror : 13
-Sunday Telegraph: 26
-Sunday Times: 117
-The Times: 149
(01/01/05 to 31/10/05)

Media update

Hertfordshire Mercury - Areas where fire risk is greatest
"These unique maps of Hertford and Ware demonstrate the fire risk to homes in your road. The maps were obtained from Herts Fire and Rescue Service exclusively by the Mercury using the Freedom of Information Act."

Scotsman - Hundreds of Scots children treated for alcohol addiction
"The statistics, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, show that health workers are counselling and treating hundreds of children who are physically dependent on alcohol, some as young as 12."

The Observer - Jowell faces conduct claims
"Tessa Jowell, Secretary for Culture, Media and Sport, is accused of breaking the rules that forced David Blunkett to resign last week as Work and Pensions Secretary. Details released to the The Observer under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that Jowell may have failed properly to disclose details of her husband's business dealings in Iran."

Academies and FoI

I have previously posted on the subject of academies not being subject to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (only maintained schools are).

I feel that this is an important issue and have created a letter that you can download to send to your MP for them to lobby for the FOIA to be amended

Download the letter (Word doc.)

Media update

IC Berkshire - Residents' group joins mum's parking fight
"A MOTHER who is forced to reverse on to a busy road because of "selfish" commuters has found support from the local residents association...He added that the group is using the freedom of information act to get the council to reveal what plans, if any, it has for the road."

Glasgow Evening Times - MSPs' expenses claims will go on the internet
"THE expense claims of MSPs will be published in minute detail under new plans to prevent abuse of the system. "

Carlisle News and Star - Time to reveal MPs’ expenses
"For the second year MPs’ expenses have been made public under the Freedom of Information Act. But the News & Star’s request for a detailed breakdown to determine exactly how the cash has been spent was refused. We are told that the information is an invasion of the MPs’ privacy, but surely constituents have a right to know how the person they elected spends taxpayers’ money."

Lewisham & Greenwich newsshopper - Hospital has to pay out more than £1m
"Figures released to News Shopper under the Freedom of Information Act show the hospital received nine claims during the year 2002/03, for which it paid out £7,631."

Daily Telegraph -£250,000 a year for NHS dentists
"Dentists are earning up to £250,000 a year in fees from the NHS, new figures have revealed.....A list of the top 50 dental practices by gross earnings has been released by the Dental Practice Board for England and Wales under the Freedom of Information Act."

The Gurdian - Are city academies really helping the poorest children?
"The figures, obtained partly under the Freedom of Information Act and partly in a written parliamentary answer, reveal that there was an overall increase in pupils at the 14 academies of more than 2,200 children compared to their predecessor schools. The number of pupils eligible for free school meals rose by around 480."

The Business online - Information act used to challenge Brown
"GORDON Brown, the UK Chancellor, may be forced to publish his entire set of economic assumptions under the Freedom of Information Act as a result of a dispute with a Liberal Democrat MP.John Hemming, a software entrepreneur elected for the LibDems in May, has acquired the economic model the Treasury used to produce the Budget and is now pressing for the accompanying data."

Wales on Sunday - Walien invasion: MoD probes UFO sightings
"WALES is being invaded by little green men, with the Ministry of Defence probing a new UFO sighting every six weeks....The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, show seven sightings in 2002, eight in 2003, four in 2004 and nine so far this year."

The Guardian - Arms and the academy
"Using the new Freedom of Information Act, The Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) has found that 67 British universities and university colleges hold significant investments in the UK's major arms companies."

BBC news - MPs' expenses claims exceed £80m
"MPs claimed expenses and allowances of more than £80m last year - equivalent to £122,677 each - figures from Westminster officials show."

Bromsgrove Standard -£4million compo hampers the hard-hit hospitals
"Information released by the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust to The Standard under the Freedom of Information Act revealed £3.952million was paid out in damages in 2004/05 to former patients at county hospitals in connection with clinical negligence claims."

Accountancy Age - MG Rover bill £5m and rising
"The DTI said this week, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, that Gervase MacGregor, the BDO partner working as the investigator, and his firm had earned £1,090,890 in fees, disbursements and VAT between the 31 May and 31 August – more than £10,000 a day."

Scotland: Debate of Freedom Of Information

From the Scottish Executive :

*"We are already committed to reviewing the operation of FOI, in particular, considering whether to extend the list of bodies subject to the Act and the level and operation of the fees.

*"I want that review to take a thorough look at the early experiences of FOI and we will be seeking views later this year and into 2006 from public authorities, users, campaigning groups, and the whole range of stakeholders to feed into what I see as "fine tuning" which will enable continued successful implementation of FOI in Scotland."
(Parliamentary Business Minister Margaret Curran)

Achieving Excellence in Freedom of Information

Another conference.... (I'm speaking at this one)

Achieving Excellence in Freedom of Information
held at The Royal Commonwealth Society in London on Wednesday 14th December 2005

Chair
Sir Alistair Graham
Committee on Standards in Public Life

Speakers

-Richard Thomas Information Commissioner
-Steve Wood Editor Open Government
-Mirza Ahmad Chief Legal Officer Birmingham City Council
-James Leaton Gray Head of Information Policy & Compliance Policy & Legal Division BBC
-Graham Mather President European Policy Forum
James Barber Chief Executive Harlequin Solutions

Full details

Conference

Freedom of Information Excellence 2005
Driving best practice in the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act
Thursday 8th December 2005, Melia White House Hotel, London

Details

Blog shortlisted for award

I'm pleased to announce that the FOIA blog has been shortlised for an award at the International Information Industry awards for the category of Best implementation of a Business Blog (Sponsored by VNUnet.com). I'm on a shortlist of 5, so fingers crossed! Thanks to whoever nominated me! and thanks to everyone who supports and promotes the blog. Awards are announced on the 30th November.

Read more about the awards Details of the shortlists will be on later next week.

New decision notices

Full deatails

Case Ref: FS50088259
Date: 20/10/05
Public Authority: The Home Office (National Offender Management Service)
Summary: On 14/02/05 the complainant requested statistical information on the number and types of complaints at HMP Long Lartin. This information was provided on 08/06/05, exceeding the 20 day time limit.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50088259

Case Ref: FS50088258
Date: 20/10/05
Public Authority: The Home Office (National Offender Management Service)
Summary: On 20/01/05 the complainant requested minutes, notes or similar of staff briefings at HMP Long Lartin. This information was provided on 08/06/05, exceeding the 20 day time limit.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50088258

Case Ref: FS50088256
Date: 20/10/05
Public Authority: The Home Office (National Offender Management Service)
Summary: On 24/01/05 the complainant requested a copy of the investigation report for a lockdown that took place at HMP Long Lartin. This was not provided until 12/05/05, exceeding the 20 day limit.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld.

Case Ref: FS50073121
Date: 20/10/05
Public Authority: The Home Office (National Offender Management Service)
Summary: On 06/01/05 the complainant requested HMP Long Lartin staff notices. The public authority responded on 17/03/05 by refusing this request because the cost of extracting information would exceed the fees limit detailed by the Act. The complainant later refocused the request and following the intervention by this office the information was provided on 15/08/05. However, both the original and the refocused request were not dealt with within the 20 day time limit, and the refusal notice did not provide details of the public authority's complaints procedure or the right to complain to the Information Commissioner. As the information was later provided no steps were identified in the Decision Notice.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, s.17 - Complaint Upheld.

Case Ref: FS50069730
Date: 19/10/05
Public Authority: Cardiff County Council (CCC)
Summary: On 05/01/05 the complainant requested documents relating to the consideration of a particular employee's position within CCC, that employee's employment tribunal and the outcomes of that tribunal. In their response, CCC stated that it was necessary to consider the public interest in relation to this request and indicated that they expected to be able to provide the outcome of their consideration of the public interest by 11/02/05. No reference was made to the particular exemption(s) the public interest test was being applied to. CCC had neither advised the complainant of a decision nor released the information by the 11/02/05 and still had not dome so at the date of issuing the Decision Notice. The Commissioner requires CCC to provide the complainant with either the information requested or a notice detailing why it is in the public interest to withhold or not confirm whether they hold it.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.10 - Complaint Upheld, s.17 - Complaint Upheld, s.10 - Complaint Upheld.
Full Transcript of Decision Notice FS50069730




Case Ref: FS50071452
Date: 18/10/05
Public Authority: Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA)
Summary: The complainant asked a question regarding the appointment of a particular Judge, who had presided over an action brought by him. It is alleged that the DCA failed to provide all of the information requested, by not providing documents evidencing the Judge's appointment. The Act provides a right of access to recorded information, not specific documents. Since the request made no reference to specific documents and the DCA answered the complainant's question, the complainant was not upheld.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.1 - Complaint Not Upheld.

Case Ref: FS50065361
Date: 18/10/05
Public Authority: Civil Aviation Authority
Summary: The complainant holds a private pilot's licence. The CAA was informed by a third party (the informant) that the complainant was ill and therefore expressed concern about his fitness to fly. The complainant requested copies of all the relevant correspondence held by the CAA and specifically asked for the name and address of the informant. The CAA refused to disclose the information citing the exemption relating to personal information provided by section 40. The Commissioner decided that personal data relating to the informant was covered by the section 40(1) exemption and could not be disclosed without breaching the First Data Protection Principle.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI s.40 - Complaint Not Upheld.

Media update

BBC news McLetchie resigns as Tory leader
"Scottish Conservative leader David McLetchie has announced that he is standing down. The move follows pressure over his Scottish Parliament taxi expenses. Mr McLetchie spent £11,500 on taxis during the first five years of Holyrood - more than any other MSP - but said the claims were made in good faith. The Edinburgh Pentlands MSP said he was standing down with a "heavy heart" but that he recognised the recent coverage had been damaging. …. Pressure had mounted on Mr McLetchie after the Scottish Parliament published full details of his travel expenses, following a request under freedom of information legislation…."

Local Govt Chronicle - CPA TO INCLUDE FOI
" Councils may be downgraded in their comprehensive performance assessment if they fail to respond to Freedom of Information requests, LGC has learned. Speculation is growing that compliance with FOI legislation — which became a duty on all councils at the start of this year — will also become part of CPA when the framework is reviewed in three years' time. Deputy information commissioner Graham Smith has hinted that patience is running out with councils who consistently fail to meet the 20 working day deadline for responding to requests. The quality of record management across councils varied enormously, he said, with many struggling to respond to requests for data from the 1960s or 70s because record-keeping systems from that period are poor or non-existent."

FoI in Spain

From the Statewatch website: Spain: "Transparency and silence" report on freedom of information throws up alarming results

"report features an analysis of the legal situation in relation to access to information in Spain, as well as figures that were compiled after requests for information were filed with a number of institutional bodies (ministries, judicial bodies, local and regional institutions) and private companies that carry out duties involving the general interest. Only 24% of the information requests received a satisfactory response, a figure that is lower than was the case for Bulgaria, Romania, Armenia, Mexico, Peru and France, who were also part of the project's 14-country sample."

New Zealand FoI

The Dominion Post, Wellington
"The Ombudsmen have accused some Government ministers of subverting democracy by withholding official information for political reasons."

Annual report available for download:

New blog

http://www.idealgovernment.com/

"let's say what we want from e-enabled government. Let's observe government first-hand. Let's say "Wouldn't It Be Better If" (wibbi). Become an ethnographer of bureaucracy today! It's beats getting frustrated with public services."