THE NUMBER of Freedom of information (FOI) requests declined by 10 per cent last year, according to the 10th annual report on the operation of the system, published yesterday by the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Dr Martin Mansergh.
The Minister said the total number of requests across the public service in 2007 was 10,704, which represented a decline of 1,100, or 10 per cent, on the previous year.
"This must be seen against a backdrop of more effective management of information by public bodies through the placement of greater amounts of information on the internet and out into the public domain, combined with a very proactive approach to providing information outside of FOI where this can be done," he said.
Of the total number of such requests in 2007, 77 per cent were granted either in full or in part, compared to 76 per cent in 2006, while 12 per cent of requests dealt with were refused, compared to 13 per cent in 2006.
The remaining 11 per cent were withdrawn, transferred or dealt with outside of FOI.
The vast bulk of these requests, 80 per cent, were made by members of the general public, with the number of requests from journalists accounting for just 8 per cent of the total. This compares with 77 per cent and 10 per cent respectively in 2006.
Business users accounted for about 6 per cent of requests, 5 per cent were from members of staff of public bodies and the remaining 1 per cent was from members of the Oireachtas or other public representatives.
"The Act continues to be successfully used by citizens and effectively operated by public servants to seek and provide very diverse information held by over 500 public bodies," said Dr Mansergh.
He said that FOI was underpinned by a robust infrastructure of supporting arrangements, including training, in public bodies.
This was headed up by the FOI central policy unit of the Department of Finance, which oversaw a network of officers in each organisation who shared expertise across established networks.
"Ten years on, we have a well-embedded regime, which has contributed over the past decade to improving the relationship between the citizen and government.
"Over these 10 years, the public service has embraced the change from a culture of secrecy as enshrined in the Official Secrets Act, 1963, to a culture of openness under FOI," said Dr Mansergh.
Fine Gael's finance spokesman, Richard Bruton, said the figures showed that the number of requests had declined by 42 per cent since Fianna Fáil had imposed fees and this showed the urgent need for the fees to be slashed.
"When Fianna Fáil started charging for FOI applications it had an immediate impact on the number of applications, which dropped by 7,739, or 42 per cent between 2003 and 2007. The Information Commissioner has said this significant reduction is due to the introduction of fees," said Mr Bruton.
"The Freedom of Information scheme was created in order to foster a culture of openness and transparency. Yet Fianna Fáil's ill-advised decision to impose fees has seriously damaged the scheme and its effectiveness.
"The Government's repeated claim that the fees discourage spurious applications is bogus and undermines the spirit in which the Act was created. It reinforces the perception that Fianna Fáil is fostering a culture of secrecy at the heart of the State," he said.
Mr Bruton said of the eight countries that operate such schemes, Ireland is one of only two jurisdictions to charge for an appeal. The Canadian state of Ontario charges €16 for an appeal, compared to €150 in Ireland.
