Derek McDowell (Labour)

This is not unusual in the Bill. It is full of subjective tests. The Bill requires decision makers to make decisions all the time as to what is in the public interest, for example. That is not clearly defined, so there is discretion. Decision makers must exercise discretion all the time. The area of personal information is one in which decision makers should be encouraged to exercise their discretion fairly liberally and to err on the side of releasing information. The thrust of the whole 1997 Act, after all, is to encourage the release and sharing of information. Section 4 of the new Bill would restrict information.

Question put: "That the words proposed to be deleted stand."

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