FOI Monkey

I am the pro-disclosure primate.

[Campaign for Freedom of Information @CampaignFoI]

Extending FOI to contractors
A major loophole in the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) means that it does not generally apply to contractors providing public services.
Read more here https://t.co/QMnV6psDh1
#supportCFOI

[WhatDoTheyKnow @WhatDoTheyKnow]

This request to @FCDOGovUK is still unanswered after 417 working days. They have extended the response deadline 21 times, saying they need more time to consider the public interest in releasing the information. https://t.co/nN1HUDNAwZ

[Martin Rosenbaum @rosenbaum6]

Seddon says CabOffice represents >10% of ICO's FOI caseload. One reason is 'capacity issues' both at ICO & at CabOffice. He hopes to have plan in place soon to clear old cases & ensure new complaints about CabOffice get 'same levels of service as the rest of the public sector'.

[Martin Rosenbaum @rosenbaum6]

Very interesting & welcome new move announced today by ICO's @wozzased - a 'bespoke plan' to tackle the FOI casework issues with @cabinetofficeuk. Anyone who makes FOI requests to CabOffice knows their track record on compliance with the law is very poor. https://t.co/k1Fghb25Cu

[Campaign for Freedom of Information @CampaignFoI]

The Information Commissioner has issued an Enforcement Notice to @LewishamCouncil for failing to respond to hundreds of #FOI requests on time. @ICONews contacted the Council following an August 2022 tweet by the Campaign and blog by @alan_ha11. https://t.co/D1ej9xVLWZ.

[mySociety @mySociety]

This is a big year for us at mySociety - our 20th anniversary! We'll be taking the opportunity not just to look back, but to set our course for where we can have most impact over the next couple of decades. Our Chief Exec Louise lays out more here: https://t.co/IiKlzxzoNN

[FOI Monkey @FOIMonkey]

Interesting meta request to BBB in two parts. Part I has senior executives complaining about having to redact sets of minutes. Part II shows the panic when they learnt that @xtophercook had obtained an unredacted copy: https://t.co/9BQuSpp27t

[Privacy Matters  @PrivacyMatters]

UK: the @ICOnews investigated potential FOI criminal offences by government departments.

Blog post by Jon Baines

https://t.co/B20QMwDiGw

[Campaign for Freedom of Information @CampaignFoI]

📢 We are urging peers to amend the National Security Bill whose Lords 2nd reading is today. It creates wide offences for people who use ‘restricted’ info to prejudice key govt policies if they have been funded by any non-UK government.

#FOI #NationalSecurity #officialsecrets

[Campaign for Freedom of Information @CampaignFoI]

.@ICONews recent #FOI Enforcement Notice against @tradegovuk has been highly effective, confirming the value of this almost wholly ignored power. The Department replied to all outstanding requests by the deadline and speeded up its arrangements for dealing with requests.

[Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva]

Poor BEIS response to a request for data underlying the Retain EU Law dashboard https://t.co/YBYXGwzSAk + https://t.co/HRzro6JkM7 HT @peterkwells

The data obviously isn't "reasonably accessible" – and ownership is immaterial to whether information is "held" for purposes of #FOI.

[Martin Rosenbaum @rosenbaum6]

Info Commissioner is consulting on new prioritisation process for FOI casework, to speed up those cases 'with the highest public interest'. Consultation closes on 19 December, give your views here - https://t.co/qcKVM12eWf

[FOI Monkey @FOIMonkey]

The Foreign Office have still not answered this request from July 2021. Yesterday they said that they were extending the response deadline to consider the public interest for the 15th time. @ICOnews need to have a word. https://t.co/tTvKo61Way

[WhatDoTheyKnow @WhatDoTheyKnow]

#FOI Redaction of personal data @RoyalNavy style! From the Royal Navy Ceremonial and Drill manual which was released via @WhatDoTheyKnow https://t.co/XBLqGRRwhF

[George Greenwood @GeorgeGreenwood]

The Cabinet Office has spent at least £300,000 in taxpayer cash taking the government’s own transparency commissioner to court in an attempt to block orders to release information under #FOI records released for such 13 recent cases show.

https://t.co/zj06N13EH7

[Lynn Wyeth 🐿️ 💙 @LynnFOI]

If you want to get geeky about government #FOI statistics…latest stats show the lowest percentage of requests responded to in time since Q1 2005!

Attached are the exemptions that are used the most.

https://t.co/OhXBurh3Cx #FreedomOfInformation

[ICO - Information Commissioner's Office @ICOnews]

NEW: We have taken action against the Department for International Trade (DIT) and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) for failing to comply with the Freedom of Information Act.

Read the full story: https://t.co/UG6zf1Lnxp

[FOI Monkey @FOIMonkey]

@HunterPrague It goes on to say that documents and residence status are the only thing that determine whether someone has entered the country illegally, and so that is what they are checking.

[FOI Monkey @FOIMonkey]

@HunterPrague They're not trying to say that German citizens need permission, they're saying that they can't enter illegally, ie they will always be allowed to enter because they are citizens. It's a bit Amtsdeutsch!