The UK government is to put forward new proposals restricting access to information available under the Freedom of Information Act.
In a clever bit of sleight of hand they plan to change the rules that currently ensure that any information if released free of charge if the costs of accessing do not exceed £600 of civil service time. The proposed revisions would allow the government to include "reading time, consideration time and consultation time" in the costs. Essentially they could drive up the costs of requests just by discussing them.
Even more worrisome is the proposal to limit the number of requests by the media and pressure groups.
According to a leak in July the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, admitted that "the government would be criticised for making the changes, but proposed commissioning a report which would provide the justification for the proposals". Isn't the purpose of a commission usually to analyse a problem and recommend a solution rather than to rationalise a conclusion already drawn? (Sorry. I'm just being nïave, aren't I?)
In a clever bit of sleight of hand they plan to change the rules that currently ensure that any information if released free of charge if the costs of accessing do not exceed £600 of civil service time. The proposed revisions would allow the government to include "reading time, consideration time and consultation time" in the costs. Essentially they could drive up the costs of requests just by discussing them.
Even more worrisome is the proposal to limit the number of requests by the media and pressure groups.
According to a leak in July the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, admitted that "the government would be criticised for making the changes, but proposed commissioning a report which would provide the justification for the proposals". Isn't the purpose of a commission usually to analyse a problem and recommend a solution rather than to rationalise a conclusion already drawn? (Sorry. I'm just being nïave, aren't I?)
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