Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Absolutely. Not only did he sign up to the withdrawal of what we had become used to in the Freedom of Information Act, another cosy little arrangement on which we never received any information was cobbled together by him and a few Independents with Bertie Ahern, leading to the formation of the Government in 2002. This articulates the point on why the Freedom of Information Act is needed as much today as it was then.

There is a common thread running through the Freedom of Information Act from its inception in 1997. It was spawned from decisions made primarily by Fianna Fáil-led Governments that resulted in the collapse of the Government in unusual circumstances in 1994 and 2011. In 1994, when the Government collapsed without a general election, the rainbow coalition introduced the mantra of openness and transparency. That is from where freedom of information from. What was regrettable was that people in Fianna Fáil realised freedom of information was a weapon for journalists and Opposition Members to aim at the inadequacies of the Government. Rather than rectify what they were doing, the people concerned decided to close off information and continue what they were doing. That is the reason for the mess we are living with today. Before he was sent to the gulag, the European Commission, in 2002, Charlie McCreevy had identified serious issues looming for the economy. Rather than deal with them, he was dispatched to the European Union and the Freedom of Information Act was dispatched with him. That is the legacy of that Government.

It is a pity that Deputy Finian McGrath has come into the Chamber to say he is a great proponent of freedom of information, as well as this, that and the other. It is a pity he did not use the opportunity to apologise for the fact that he and the people who supported the Government at the time got it so wrong by removing that provision. Were it not for the fact that journalists and Opposition Members had been prevented from having access to information that would have exposed what two successive Fianna Fáil-led Governments had been trying to do to the country, namely, inflict economic misery that we must clear up after the collapse, we might not be where we are today.

It is ironic that we are discussing the Freedom of Information Bill today. There was a discussion on radio earlier about emergency powers legislation which was introduced during the Emergency in the Second World War. While we are very fortunate to have access to information to the extent promised in the Bill, we must bear in mind that certain agencies in the State must keep information secret. Some information cannot be placed in the public arena for State security reasons.

While we call it the Freedom of Information Act, access to information is anything but free. Sometimes the more vexatious and spurious requests for information can tie up officers in local authorities, State agencies and public bodies for a huge amount of time. This costs money. To those who are having a go at the fees charged, the real cost of accessing information is far in excess of the fees charged. The research conducted for us shows that the vast majority of freedom of information requests come from journalists and that some of them are convoluted and complicated. They take time and it costs money.

Politicians and people working in the public service of my generation have become used to the idea of freedom of information, which is good. That means that when decisions are being made, or when people are acting in a public agency or making representations, they are conscious that whatever they say or commit to in writing or an e-mail might end up in the public arena. That is good because it means that, as we go about our work, we are conscious of the fact that we are representatives of the people. Whatever we have to say on their behalf should be capable of being reproduced in public.

I welcome the provisions of the Bill which is long overdue. Great credit is due to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. The people who bemoan the Bill and say the Government has delayed it should look back on their own record and ask whether it was appropriate to do what they did in 2002 in reducing the scope of the Freedom of Information Act and whether they should have left it as it was.

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