Vol. 559 No. 1
311 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Health and Children if a decision has been taken by the South-Eastern Health Board to give verbal replies to freedom of information requests from a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; if so, the reason this decision was taken; if it complies with standard practice; his views on whether it is best practice to issue such replies in writing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25431/02]
Public bodies are required to charge fees in accordance with section 47 of the Freedom of Information Act, 1997 and under section 10 may refuse access where the payment of such fees is outstanding. The South-Eastern Health Board has processed a large number of requests for the person referred to by the Deputy. In the context of outstanding fees and significant effort required to meet ongoing requests, the board has decided to provide information to the requester outside the Act to the extent to which such information is readily available. The board has written to the requester regarding this and has attempted to explain the operation of the Act to them on many occasions. The Act provides requesters with an independent appeal mechanism with which this person is familiar and it is for the Information Commissioner to review such decisions under the Act.
