freedom of information.co.uk

October 11th 2004. 

The reporter who pioneered the use of government openness regulations has warned bureaucrats not to defy the new Freedom of Information Act. In an interview with freedomofinformation.co.uk Rob Evans of The Guardian said that withholding information on spurious grounds will backfire on those responsible by generating negative publicity. Officials acting this way will also create extra work for themselves, he predicted, because cases will be appealed to the official watchdog, Information Commissioner Richard Thomas.

Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which comes into force on January 1st 2005, some categories of information can be withheld, including documents concerning the formulation of government policy. In many cases decisions to withhold are subject to a 'public interest test', although Mr Thomas has repeatedly made clear that the test must be correctly applied and that 'there is no exemption for embarrassment.'

Mr Evans said some departments have persisted with 'unnecessary, unjustified and silly' attempts to block information he has sought under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. Citing the case of the Cabinet Office's refusal to release a list of gifts given to ministers, he added, '[The] refusal and all the subsequent developments led to us writing about five stories, all pointing out the Government's reluctance. If they had just given us the list when we originally asked for it we would have written just one story and moved on.'  The Parliamentary Ombudsman eventually found in the newspaper's favour, since when the Cabinet Office has routinely released the list.

Mr Evans is the only British newspaper reporter employed specifically to exploit the country's existing openness regime. Using the Code of Practice, he has contributed to many Guardian exclusives, including recent stories on an alleged British Aerospace slush fund and the pharmaceutical industry's influence on the drugs regulator. Although derided when introduced by John Major's government in 1994, Mr Evans described the Code as a 'useful tool.'

The FOIA supersedes the Code by giving a legal right of access to information, a development which should prompt more requests for information and greater openness. Mr Evans praised some government departments , including the Department of Culture Media and Sport and the Ministry of Defence, which he said had adapted well to the new climate but he described the Cabinet Office as 'abysmal' and was also highly critical of the Department of Trade and Industry. He urged departments to only withhold information that is genuinely secret and predicted that the Information Commissioner would make common sense judgements on such matters.

Read full interview with Rob Evans