Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 22 January 2014
27. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if Irish Water will be opened to freedom of information; if he is considering opening Coillte and other semi-State companies to freedom of information; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2695/14]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, I indicated last November in the context of the Committee Stage debate on the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill that it was my intention that Irish Water should be made subject to FOI at an early stage following the enactment of the new legislation. On the basis of recent developments and following the commencement of the Irish Water Services (No. 2) Act, 2013 and taking into account the likely timetable for the enactment of the FOI Bill, I have concluded that arrangements should be made for Irish Water to come under FOI from its legal establishment date in 2013 as expeditiously as possible.
Rather than awaiting the enactment of the new FOI Bill, I have decided to utilize the powers under the Freedom of Information Act 1997 in respect of Irish Water. In such circumstances the Act provides that a positive resolution of both Houses is required before the Order comes into force and FOI actually applies to the public body concerned. I would propose - subject to the approval of the Oireachtas in due course - to allow Irish Water 30 days preparation time following the making of the Order for the company to make the administrative arrangements required to implement FOI.
In relation to the second aspect of the Deputy's question relating to whether FOI should be applied to Coillte and other semi-state companies, a key feature of the new FOI legislation is that FOI will now apply to all non-commercial state bodies. As far as commercial state bodies - which would include Coillte - are concerned, as I have highlighted on a number of occasions in the course of the passage to date of the FOI Bill through the Oireachtas, I believe that there are other important considerations that should inform and guide the approach taken in finalising the FOI legislation.
The Government's assessment is that, in general, and consistent with the approach adopted since FOI first came into effect in 1998 commercial state bodies should not be subject to FOI requirements. The rationale for this approach is the risk of the uneven competitive market environment that would be created in circumstances that commercial state bodies operating in a competitive market were subject to FOI but their privately-owned market competitors were not. This would be expected to have an adverse impact on the commercial position of the state body in question, which would not be in the public interest or consistent with the need to safeguard the State's economic and financial interests. Moreover, as I have stressed very significant information is available on the activities of these commercial companies reflecting their obligations under company law, the information they provide to Government Departments and relevant sectoral regulators which is available for release under FOI or otherwise.
