Changes to FoI costings threaten openness

19 Oct 06
MPs and campaigners have warned that proposed changes to the way government processes freedom of information requests could seriously weaken the effectiveness of the legislation.

20 October 2006

MPs and campaigners have warned that proposed changes to the way government processes freedom of information requests could seriously weaken the effectiveness of the legislation.

Under current arrangements, an FoI request can be refused if the cost of dealing with it exceeds £600 in the case of central government departments, or £450 for other public authorities.

But the Department for Constitutional Affairs this week said it was considering changing how these costs are calculated by allowing the time staff spend on requests to be factored into cost calculations. The change would mean many more requests would breach the cost barrier.

An early day motion tabled on October 16 by MPs Tony Wright and Alan Beith, respective chairs of the public administration and constitutional affairs select committees, stated that 'such changes could undermine the Act's benefits of increased openness, accountability and trust in the work of public authorities'.

Freedom of information campaigners predicted that 13% of requests currently dealt with could be refused. Maurice Frankel, director of the Campaign for Freedom of Information, said: 'Ministers often insist on personally taking any sensitive decisions under the FoI Act. Allowing their time to be counted means that the more politically contentious or embarrassing the request, the greater the chance of it being refused on cost grounds.'

An independent economic review of the FoI Act, commissioned by the DCA, revealed that the cost to central government of processing requests was £24.4m per year, while the wider public sector incurred costs of £11.1m.

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