Information and Communications Technology: Freedom of Information

Jane Lambert

Last updated 30 Sep 2005

This case note first appeared on the Old Colony House website

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 received royal assent on 30 Nov 2000 and came fully into force on 1 Jan 2005. It supplements and extends the Data Protection Act 1998. It obliges public authorities to state in writing whether they hold information described in a request for information, and, if they do, to communicate such information within 20 working days or such other time as may be specified by regulation. For the purpose of this Act, a "public authority" is one of a number of public bodies specified in the first schedule to the Act, designated by the Secretary of State or
a particular state or other publicly owned company or corporation The obligation to supply information is conditional upon the applicant's providing sufficient information to locate and identify the information in question and paying the relevant fee. It is also  subject to certain exemptions.

Exemptions
The Act is enforced by the Information (formerly  "Data Protection") Commissioner who considers public authorities' schemes for the publication of information that it holds (known as publication schemes). The Commissioner makes recommendations as to good practice and, generally, promotes good practice by public authorities. He or she has a duty to consider complaints by members of the public as to whether a public authority has compliance with its obligations under the Act. The Commissioner may requisition information from such authorities by means of an information notice. If he or she finds that there has been a failure to comply with the Act, the Commissioner may issue an enforcement notice specifying the failure and stating the steps that the authority must take to comply with its obligations. The Information Commissioner's decisions are subject to appeal to the Information Tribunal and thereafter to the High Court in England and Wales and Northern Ireland or the Court of Session in Scotland. An appeal also lies to that tribunal at the instance of the Commissioner or any member of the public seeking information against a minister's certificate exempting information from the Act on grounds of national security.

International Comparisons
The United Kingdom was relatively slow to enact freedom of information legislation. According to the white paper "Your Right to Know", Sweden has allowed its citizens access to public records since 1766 and the USA since 1966. The Act generally follows the lines of other countries' legislation in the number of days specified for a response, the grounds of exemption and the methods of enforcement. However, it also builds on experience acquired from the operation of the 1984 and 1998 Data Protection Acts.

Further Information
The Department for Constitutional Affairs provides considerable information on the Act. Guidance is offered on how to use, understand and implement the Act. There are links to the white paper, statute and secondary legislation. Statistics and a new Information Rights Journal are available from the home page. Information, leaflets and report of the Commissioner's decisions are available from his home page.

 

 

 

   

 

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