McCreevy defends proposed changes to FOI Act

The Minister for Finance has again insisted that there is no "intention to restrict" the individual's right to access to personal information in the proposed changes to the Freedom of Information Act.

Mr McCreevy said he would welcome any suggestions at the next stage of the legislative process which would "have the effect of achieving the required clarity and consistency".

The second stage was passed in the Dáil by 74 votes to 53, amid continued disruption by the Labour Party to protest against the "filleting" of the legislation and the Government "ramming it through the Dáil".

The Bill will amend the existing Act to delay the availability of Cabinet papers from five to 10 years.

It also curtails access to information in other areas, such as letters between Ministers, and includes an up-front fee for FOI applications.

Mr McCreevy insisted the Bill was "quite reasonable and quite straightforward", and was not a "draconian rolling back" of the 1997 Act. It was, instead, a "sensible and balanced package of measures being brought forward on the basis of five years of experience of operation of the Act".

However, the Labour leader, Mr Pat Rabbitte, condemned the changes as "fundamentally undemocratic".

Referring to the settlement between the former Taoiseach, Mr Charles Haughey, and the Revenue Commissioners, Mr Rabbitte said it was ironic that in a week when the "corruption of the past has been so amply demonstrated, Fianna Fáil should be in the process of dismantling the apparatus of open and accountable Government". It was ironic too that it was being done by people who had made their reputations in opposing Mr Haughey.

The Labour leader said the original Act was part of a package of legislative reforms aimed at restoring trust in public life.

Hitting out at the Progressive Democrats as part of the "Coalition of the willing", Mr Rabbitte said they had made a "cynical calculation" that the issue did not preoccupy the ordinary voter.

"This is an arrogant Government which does not believe it should be held accountable to the people. The indecent haste with which this Bill is being pushed through the House is undoubtedly related to what might emerge in Cabinet papers were the five-year rule to remain in place. In April and May of 1998, the Cabinet was discussing the manner in which revelations about former Deputy Burke should be investigated. We know this is a subject about which the Taoiseach is sensitive," Mr Rabbitte said.

The new legislation "will limit the capacity of citizens, including the parliamentary Opposition, to hold the Government to account. That is why Labour has made strenuous efforts this week to obstruct passage of this Bill. We cannot treat this as normal legislation introduced in the normal way. The Government has gone beyond the boundaries of democratic practice and we cannot acquiesce in that."

Mr Batt O'Keeffe (FF, Cork South-Central) said the media "have a vested interest in the legislation as the lovely stories and headlines will disappear. The Government is accountable to the people and not to editors, commentators and journalists. They should get off the bandwagon because their argument is not making its mark with ordinary people."

Ms Olwyn Enright, Fine Gael's education spokeswoman, said a particularly serious aspect of the Bill was the effect sections of the public feared it would have on them.

"Mr Colm O'Gorman, the director of One in Four, clearly stated that the proposed restrictions would silence and suppress the voices of abuse victims. He said it was crucial for victims to uncover what might be the only supporting evidence about the abuse they suffered while in the care of State institutions. He went so far as to say that the restrictions on personal records, exempting all but records containing personal information, will place severe limits on the ability of abuse victims to complete the healing process," Ms Enright said.

The Bill goes to committee stage next week to discuss amendments.