Vol. 562 No. 1
116 Ms Burton asked the Minister for Finance when the promised Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill will be published; the main changes it is proposed to make to the 1997 Act; when it is intended to publish the report of the high level group that reviewed the operation of the Act; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5493/03]
The Government today gave approval for the publication of the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003, which should now be published by the end of the week and circulated to Deputies and Senators. Details of the changes will come into the public domain on publication and there will be an opportunity to debate these issues in both Houses of the Oireachtas shortly. Arrangements are being finalised by the Department of the Taoiseach to publish the report of the high level group to coincide with the publication of the Bill.
I am pleased that speculation has come to an end and we now know that this very retrograde Bill will be published this week. Will the Minister agree that in a modern State open Government and freedom of information is the best route to good Government? Will he agree that any substantial changes to the 1997 Act, or any widespread charges for access to information, will give the Government the name of being the most secretive and closed Government ever? Will he accept that the 1997 Act provided adequately for the protection of national security interests and Northern Ireland files, because they are all covered by exemptions? Will he agree that any changes to the legislation will require full consultation with all the parties in the House, with interested parties in the media and the information commissioner? Why is the Bill coming before the House prior to any serious consultations with any of the parties to which I have referred?
Deputy Burton's points are all excellent and she can make them again when the Bill is published.
I find the Minister's attitude very arrogant. He likes to claim the lion's share of the credit for the Celtic tiger but all politicians who have been involved in Government over the past ten years are entitled to claim their fair share. Does the Minister agree that when the history of this era is written, one name will stand out, that of the former Minister of State, Eithne FitzGerald, who introduced this groundbreaking Act? Does he agree it has been one of those Acts which has characterised the movement of Irish society from a rather closed and backward looking one to a international one which can compete with the best in the world and which is not afraid that the arrangements, deals and thinking of Government and of Departments of State are subject to full scrutiny? In the modern world, to be subject to full scrutiny means to be subject to the scrutiny of the media and journalists and that is in the interests of the public.
The Minister should bear in mind that the United States, that great democracy, has operated a freedom of information Act for the past 50 years and that another great democracy, Sweden, which has a high wage and high productivity economy, has operated a freedom of information system for the past 250 years. I ask the Minister not to close the door in a retrograde way on freedom of information given the very successful period of implementation of the Act. Does the Minister agree that any minor problems with the Act would be relatively easily addressed, but only after appropriate consultation with the interested party?
I certainly subscribe to what Deputy Burton said about the former Deputy, Eithne FitzGerald, as both the Deputy and I have known her from an early age and are very mindful of her excellent qualities. Unfortunately, the electorate of Dublin does not seem to have the same view we have of Eithne FitzGerald but that is the way democracy operates. I am also delighted to note that Deputy Burton has lauded the United States—
For its freedom of information legislation.
—which I am sure is news to Deputy McGrath and Deputy Richard Bruton, and I appreciate that.
I lauded it for its freedom of information legislation.
I look forward to a rehash of this debate when the Bill is published and debated in this House.
