Government Wants To Charge For FOI Requests

[Kati]

The government wants to restrict Freedom of Information laws - that help citizens expose dodgy lobbyists, poor government decisions and threats to public safety. They're desperate to water-down our right to hold them to account. While only a few of us may have ever made a request using Freedom of Information laws - they have the power to affect us all.

It was a ‘Freedom of Information’ (FOI) request that exposed the MPs’ expenses scandal. And it was another FOI request which exposed that a third of NHS contracts were being handed-out to private companies. FOI requests are critical for many of the campaigns that improve our society.

Newspapers and several Conservative MPs have already spoken out against the plans. A huge people-powered petition - signed by hundreds of thousands of us - will add even more pressure on the government to scrap their idea. Please sign the petition now.

https://speakout.38degrees.org.uk/campaigns/protect-freedom-of-information

[stevemLS]

Re: Government Wants To Charge For FOI Requests

Tony Blair called it his biggest ever mistake (some of us thought Iraq might be slightly higher up his [long] list of mistakes)!

[Kati]

Re: Government Wants To Charge For FOI Requests

I think it's wrong :sad: If FOI's end up being charged for, people will stop using them. We shouldn't have to make these requests to get the info that is supposedly "in the public domain", but until they are put where everyone can access it I believe FOI's are necessary.

[stevemLS]

Re: Government Wants To Charge For FOI Requests

I have mixed views, on the one hand, most information should be freely available (although to have "everything" where "everyone" can access it is logistically impossible) there has to be some things which should be private. For example, where a policy is being developed, yes the policy should be available, but not the steps leading up to it, people should be free to express their views in the formulation of the policy in a frank and open way even if they are rubbished and never make it anywhere near the final policy play a part in its development. The threat of those views, by way of minutes etc, being published is a real inhibition on people.

[Yes, I work for a public authority]