My thoughts on freedom of information, the issues it raises, the changes it is causing, the stories that result – and what it means for you
10 hours ago
Public officials can't escape the reach of the Freedom of Information Act by using private e-mail accounts for messages they would rather keep secret.
That's the clear implication of new guidance issued today by the Information Commissioner, Chris Graham, who says the law has been "somewhat misunderstood" in the past.
10:07 UK time, Monday, 5 December 2011
One of the most fundamental principles of the British tax system is privacy.
But attitudes differ in some other countries. I have just been reminded of this, having seen a visualisation of the details of Finland's highest taxpayers.
13:56 UK time, Wednesday, 30 November 2011
The Cabinet Office and the BBC have reached a compromise in a long-running freedom of information dispute over documents relating to Margaret Thatcher and the Hillsborough disaster.
The government has promised to release these papers by June next year. On this basis the BBC is dropping its FOI application for them.
15:34 UK time, Thursday, 17 November 2011
Most people in the world live in countries with some kind of "right-to-know" law that promises access to various categories of government information.
What effect does this have in practice? Not much in many cases, according to a survey released today by the international news agency Associated Press.
08:20 UK time, Thursday, 10 November 2011
In terms of freedom of information, local councils in England are apparently delivering more for less.
That's the good news conclusion of the latest academic study, which suggests that while the number of council FOI requests increased last year, the overall cost of handling them nevertheless fell - because local authorities have become faster and more efficient.
08:31 UK time, Monday, 7 November 2011
An occasional series about refusals to answer freedom of information requests for apparently puzzling reasons.
My colleagues in BBC Stoke have been following a dispute between Stoke-on-Trent City Council and the local water theme park, WaterWorld, dating back to 2008, about possible arrangements for swimming provision.
13:46 UK time, Friday, 21 October 2011
The Freedom of Information Act is about to go through a process known in Whitehall jargon as 'post-legislative scrutiny' or, in other words, examining how it is working in practice.
This procedure will take some time but could have a crucial impact on the future development of freedom of information in the UK. It seems to have left some FOI campaigners worried about how the Act might be scaled back and some public bodies and private companies worried about how it may be further extended.
10:17 UK time, Monday, 5 September 2011
As online shopping booms, have you ever wondered what happens to those valuable items sent in the post which can't be delivered?
Freedom of information research shows that the Royal Mail is making an increasing sum of money by selling these goods at auction, amounting to nearly £1m last year.
08:37 UK time, Tuesday, 23 August 2011
The number of signatories on the petition demanding that the government disclose its files on the 1989 Hillsborough tragedy has now passed the 100,000 mark. This means that it has to be considered for debating time in the House of Commons.
But there are new questions about the Cabinet Office case for resisting publication of these records.
12:40 UK time, Friday, 19 August 2011
Who could have more influence over government policy?
Chris Graham, the Information Commissioner who officially oversees whether public bodies are implementing the Freedom of Information Act, or the tens of thousands of members of the public who have signed an e-petition calling for ministers to release documents relating to the 1989 Hillsborough stadium disaster?
09:14 UK time, Wednesday, 27 July 2011
The Metropolitan Police can't find the document setting out the details of the public relations consultancy services it controversially bought from Neil Wallis, former deputy editor of the News of the World.
But it hasn't lost all the files associated with the contract. It does have the restaurant receipt for the meal with Mr Wallis which was claimed on expenses by Dick Fedorcio, the Met's Director of Public Affairs.
15:14 UK time, Tuesday, 26 July 2011
The government has been ordered to make public documents revealing discussions which the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher held about the 1989 Hillsborough stadium disaster, where 96 Liverpool fans were killed and for which the police were later blamed.
The Information Commissioner has now ruled that releasing the files would be in the public interest.
16:09 UK time, Monday, 25 July 2011
The government has released the names of highly paid civil servants which were previously kept secret.
Last year ministers decided to publish the broad salary details of individuals working for public bodies who earned over £150,000 annually.
09:44 UK time, Thursday, 14 July 2011
In May 2010 David Cameron met Rupert Murdoch for what Downing Street calls a "general meeting".
That is on the list of prime ministerial meetings already routinely revealed by the government.
14:21 UK time, Thursday, 7 July 2011
"We know nothing at all about the performance of GPs."
That was what Tim Kelsey, the Cabinet Office official overseeing the government's transparency strategy, told a conference last month.
08:43 UK time, Tuesday, 5 July 2011
As the arguments continue over whether Prince Charles interferes in political controversies, I thought it would be worth clarifying what seems to be a widespread misapprehension about the legal basis for secrecy on his contacts with ministers.
Over the weekend the Mail on Sunday reported that Charles has had at least nine private meetings with ministers in the coalition government.
14:06 UK time, Thursday, 23 June 2011
The Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Defence and Birmingham council have been forced to sign undertakings with the Information Commissioner to promise to improve the way that they handle freedom of information requests.
These are the three public authorities which have given the Information Commissioner Chris Graham most concern over their especially poor record at administering FOI.
08:37 UK time, Monday, 6 June 2011
For years the UK's health professionals have been preparing for a pandemic flu outbreak that they fear could lead to huge numbers of deaths and seriously disrupt the functioning of the nation.
Above is one of the government advertisements that we would have seen if it had happened by now. Never previously broadcast, it was obtained by the BBC through a freedom of information request.
08:17 UK time, Wednesday, 18 May 2011
In 1985 the Ministry of Defence official Clive Ponting was tried for passing secret papers about the Falklands War to an MP, but acquitted when he argued the leak was in the public interest.
It was one of the most controversial and dramatic court cases in the history of the Official Secrets Act.
09:15 UK time, Thursday, 12 May 2011
The BBC has today released the results of a detailed survey of how much local councils in England are planning to spend in the coming year on their range of public services.
This is the first overview of how English council budgets are responding to the government's squeeze on spending. It is an extensive piece of research, which obtained data from 268 of the 352 English authorities.
BBC News specialist in using the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act.
Trains and advises BBC journalists on FOI, and has addressed international conferences on journalism and FOI.
Executive producer in BBC Political Programmes department, overseeing a variety of radio programming.
Producer of radio documentaries on topics ranging from the inside story of Gordon Brown’s premiership to the politics of The Simpsons
Nick Robinson
Political editor
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