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Out-Law News 1 min. read

Freedom of Information – six months on


Local authorities in England received 35,406 requests under the Freedom of Information Act in the first six months of the Act’s operation, and have handled implementation without serious problems, according to a recent survey.

The report, commissioned by the Improvement and Development Agency and carried out by the UCL Constitution Unit, found that most requests (60%) had come from private individuals, 18% had come from businesses, and 10% from journalists – who accounted for some of the most problematic requests.

Around 8% of requests were refused.

On average, says the report, district councils spent £31,223 in preparing for the Act, while other types of councils – such as county councils or London boroughs – spent an average of £55,881. Total set up costs amounted to around £15 million, with operating costs – relating to 480,247 hours work – amounting to around £12 million.

Sixty-eight percent of the 200 local authorities responding to the survey did not charge applicants for dealing with FOI requests. Of those authorities that did charge, 73% only charged for the costs of disbursements, such as postage. Most authorities did not think the time and money spent in charging would be cost-effective.

The survey asked authorities to identify the three main problems they faced in complying with the Act. The top problems cited by authorities were:

  • applying exemptions – particularly in balancing competing public interests, or in deciding whether a piece of information is “environmental” and therefore within the Environmental Information Regulatory regime;
  • ensuring that staff complied with timescales, processes and procedures;
  • coping with limited resources in time, staff and money

On the other hand, authorities reported that FOI compliance has had a positive impact in some ways, most particularly with regards records management, a more “open” culture within the authority, and better communication and co-operation between departments.

Background

The Freedom of Information Act came into full effect on 1st January, giving individuals for the first time the statutory right to see a massive amount of information held by Government departments and thousands of public bodies.

People now have a right to information on the way decisions are made, and public money is spent, by more than 100,000 public authorities, including Government departments, schools, NHS Trusts, police forces and local authorities.

Under the Act, anyone, of any nationality, and living anywhere in the world, can make a written request for information, and expect a response within 20 working days. The 20 days are calculated from the day after a request is received.

Public authorities must disclose properly requested information unless an exemption applies. In most cases, even where an exemption applies, they must still disclose information to the public if the public interest in disclosure is greater than the competing public interest in the particular exemption.

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