How freedom of information has become a farce - The Independent (IE)

How freedom of information has become a farce

THE revelations in this newspaper last weekend about the excessive spending in Fas represented a notable victory for the Freedom of Information act. However, such successes are increasingly rare because by changing the law, this Fianna Fail/Progressive Democrat-led Government has managed to make it so difficult to obtain information as to render the act largely defunct. In truth, Freedom of Information in Ireland is a farce.

The information uncovered by the painstaking efforts of Shane Ross and Nick Webb is a tangible example of why FoI is so important.

Established by John Bruton's Rainbow government in 1997, the FoI act sought to "replace a culture of secrecy within the public service with a culture of openness".

Today, the Sunday Independent catalogues some of its recent experiences with various government departments, State agencies and public sector bodies to illustrate how dysfunctional the FoI system now is.

But why is FoI so vital?

 

FULL ARTICLE: <http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/how-freedom-of-information-has-become-a-farce-1558264.html?service=Print>