Requests for access to information relating to housing and rent are likely to feature prominently when the Freedom of Information Act comes into operation for local authorities next Wednesday.
Mr Kevin Murphy, Information Commissioner, said he expected these areas, along with complaints against local authority tenants, to top the list of requests for information under the Act. He was speaking at the launch of the Act for local authorities in Dublin yesterday.
As Ombudsman he had come across situations where decisions were based on internal guidelines which may or may not be documented. Under the Act all guidelines, rules, circulars and so on would have to be published.
"In the local authority area, for example, the criteria or the rules for allocating housing may not always be transparent or open to scrutiny by the public," he said. "It could be anticipated that applicants for housing will want access to their files and to see housing waiting lists.
"Subject to the provisions of the Act, they will have a right of access to the reports prepared by housing officers."
He pointed out that the Act had been in operation since April 21st, and 1,800 requests for information had been received. The experience so far of those public bodies already covered by the Act was that the highest number of requests had come into the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs and the Revenue Commissioners. More than 90 per cent of these were for personal information.
The Act provided for a system of internal review of refusals of requests for information and, if the request was still refused, an appeal to the Information Commissioner. "At this stage I have received over 100 appeals from decisions of public bodies, or just over 5 per cent of total requests," he said.
The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, said some politicians and public servants might view this Act with fear and trepidation. "I hope we can see beyond the threat to the challenge which this change brings to open up our processes and stand over our decisions," he said.
He stressed that the work of preparing for the Act had been done by the Freedom of Information officers in each local authority, and by the staff of the Local Government Management Services Board. He also thanked a small group of experts from Australia who shared their experience.
Mr Martin Cullen, Minister of State for Finance with responsibility for the Act, said experience abroad suggested there would be more requests under the Act to local authorities and health boards than to other public bodies, because people's daily lives were most affected by decisions made by these bodies.