Federal Ministers and department heads will no longer have the power to refuse access to Federal Government documents they believe not to be in the public interest, in new freedom of information (FOI) reforms announced by Senator John Faulkner today.
The ability to block documents was done under "conclusive certificates" which have now been abolished.
The certificates stop the release of government documents if a minister believed the disclosure is not in the public interest, meaning the document cannot be released under the FOI system even if the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has ruled it should be.
Instead, the decision on whether to stop access to documents will be made by the AAT.
Senator Faulkner says the Government has made a major step towards ensuring integrity in the handling of Government information.
"The Government is committed to reforming the FOI Act and promoting a pro-disclosure culture across Government," he said.
Existing certificates will also be revoked if new applications for documents are made.
Further reforms to FOI laws will take place later this year when draft legislation is released for public consultation, before the Government introduces legislation next year.
Indonesia tells bombers families get ready
16 years ago
No comments:
Post a Comment