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Freedom of information

Stepping back into the dark

Like mildew, bad government thrives in the dark, a truth it seemed the current administration understood when it legislated for freedom of information. But new proposals to curtail rights under the act cast doubt on ministers' appetite for daylight. A fortnight ago Lord Falconer put forward the changes, citing in his support government-commissioned research that highlighted the costs of providing information. A special report in today's Media Guardian calls into question the robustness of this work, identifying dubious assumptions buried in the small print that may inflate the expenses involved. This is worrying, although there would be no grounds for greater secrecy, even if the estimated costs were right - not only because they would still be modest but also because there are principles at stake.

Voters should be allowed to investigate what their elected government is up to as a matter of democratic right, not privilege. When Labour was in opposition Neil Kinnock promised to make a freedom of information bill his first, and Tony Blair described such legislation as "absolutely fundamental" to the new form of governance he wanted. Sadly, after taking power Mr Blair fell into the traditional executive mindset which sees openness as a luxury in the government's gift, not an entitlement. This misconception was apparent in the unrestricted ministerial veto against disclosure that so weakened the legislation; the same thinking now leaves ministers feeling justified in proposing to tighten the rules further on bean-counting grounds.

Currently, requests that would cost more than £600 to process are disallowed. Lord Falconer's first proposal is to count the expensive ministerial time spent agonising over whether to release material against this total. This raises the spectre of ministers being able to refuse to release awkward facts by playing for time. His second suggestion is that the cost cap should apply cumulatively to all requests that a particular individual or organisation makes in a particular period. This was sparked by the discovery that some, notably journalists, were making extensive use of the act. But this is not a problem - reporters may ask for more data than other citizens, but it is their job to establish facts for the community as a whole. Preventing organisations like the BBC from making a number of requests commensurate with its size is absurd. The effect would be especially pernicious as repeat inquiries are often needed to counter the way ministers and advisers use the sweeping exemptions to block disclosure. For example, one piece of awkward information might be kept under wraps for "commercial confidentiality", but reporters might still get it by asking for something a bit different. With a cumulative limit on requests, this freedom to try again could be compromised.

The reality is that the Freedom of Information Act, in spite of its flaws, has worked well. Last week the information commissioner released figures showing that few requests were from companies seeking commercial advantage, while most were from private citizens. And any notion that it is unaffordable is unfounded. Even the government-commissioned research suggests that administering the act costs only £35m per year - no more than the amount of extra cash that the last budget set aside to support elite athletes. The true cost of openness is lower still, as some expenditure is better controlled when disclosure is likely. Official entertainment budgets, for example, that can be crawled all over will be kept under tighter control. By forcing problems into the open earlier, free information also cuts the risks of prolonged cover-ups, which sagas like that of BSE prove can be costly. When it comes to ID cards and CCTV, ministers like to argue that those with nothing to hide have nothing to fear. With freedom of information, they should apply the same logic to themselves.

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