Freedom of Information
Freedom of Information
The Freedom of Information Act
2000 is designed to establish a culture of openness and
transparency in public administration. The Act provides a
general right of access to all types of recorded information
held by public authorities, subject to certain exemptions, and
imposes obligations on these authorities as to how they should
respond to written requests for information. However, the
public authority is not required to release information to
which any of the exemptions in the Act applies. Typically,
information may be withheld if its release would compromise the
health and safety of staff; where confidential data about
others is included; or for reasons of security. For a full list
of exemptions, log on to:
www.ico.gov.uk/
The Act also establishes the Office of Information Commissioner
with responsibility for ensuring compliance with the
requirements of the Act. Furthermore, the Act requires that,
from November 2002, the Board adopts a Publication Scheme
approved by the Information Commissioner.
The aim of the Publication Scheme is to outline:
- the categories of information routinely published.
- the manner in which information will be published.
- whether the information will be available free of charge or on payment of a fee.
The remaining provisions of the Act, covering the individual right of access to information, were brought into force for most public authorities in January 2005.