ACAS now claim not to be subject to FOI

From the archives we can see that on 12 November 2008 the ACAS website included the ACAS Publication Scheme this document stated that: “The Acas publication scheme is drawn up under Section 19 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (opens in a new window).” Section 19 of the Act states that “It shall be the […] →Read more

UK’s Freedom of Information Officers are invited to join closed regional groups

“We can now operate regional closed user groups.  These are local groups where people contribute with regard to local matters.  You will not see a group unless you are a member of one.  The main benefits include confidentiality, NAIM is not subject to FOI, a reduction in inbox content, an archive of issues etc etc.” […] →Read more

Lord McNally on Freedom of Information

“My Lords, does not the Minister feel thoroughly ashamed that a Government who came to power committed to freedom of information and ending the culture of secrecy in Whitehall cannot even provide a list of the times and dates when the Prime Minister saw the most powerful media magnate in the world?” Source: Theyworkforyou “My […] →Read more

Freedom of Information in a hung parliament

OK, so the economy is the big issue in this election and FOI isn’t and probably never will be but it does matter as FOI can arm the public information about public services, public spending and decision making. Right now the full result of the election are not known but we do know that no […] →Read more

UKIP tell me their policy on Freedom of Information

Recently CFOI compared the position of the three main parties on Freedom of Information based on there manifestoes. I wanted to find out about some of the other parties’ policies, UKIP have replied today: “…Thank you for your email, which has been passed on to me as a member of the UKIP policy team. UKIP […] →Read more

UK Parliament Exploits Dissolution to Delay FOI Responses

MY EMAIL TO ICO Dear ICOI am writing to complain about the general approach taken by publicofficials to those requests addressed to the House of Commons and theHouse of Lords to: (a) requests received prior to dissolution but not yet answered; and(b) requests received during dissolution. I am also complaining specifically about the approach taken […] →Read more

Government Wine costs up to £132 per bottle

If you have ever wondered about the Government Wine Cellars, you should probably read this response to an FOI request: “The five most expensive wines currently in stock in the Government Hospitality cellar are: Château Lafite 1998 Château Cheval Blanc 1996 Château Haut-Brion 1996 Château Trotanoy 1998 and Vieux Château Certan 2005.” “the wines listed […] →Read more

Mail article about Prince Andrew and Kazach Tycoon

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1250952/Andrews-3m-bonus-secret-deal-Kazakh-tycoon-bought-12m-house.html →Read more

Copper content of a 2p coin

“I am the head of Chemistry in a Scottish Secondary school. One of my senior pupils is investigating methods of determining copper and iron in 2p coins.” http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/copper_content_in_a_2p_coin#incoming-20865 The answer supplied ten days later was 7% Copper and 93% mild steel (with tolerances also disclosed). This is a really good simple example of the benefit […] →Read more

How many public bodies are there in the UK?

Recently, a WhatDoTheyKnow.com volunteer was answering a query from a user of the site and was surprised to learn that the site already had the Deer Commission for Scotland listed. It was noted that Whatdotheyknow.com has quite a lot of public bodies as of 12:30pm today there are 3,303 public authorities sites on the site […] →Read more