Results 21-40 of 406 for speaker:Charlie McCreevy

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I cannot accept the amendment, or any of the similarly worded amendments which propose the deletion of all sections of the Bill other than sections 7, 12, 13, 17, 23 and 24. I outlined the purpose of the Bill on Second Stage and the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Ahern, spoke about it on Committee Stage. I will not accept the amendments put down by the Labour Party, as they would, in...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I will not accept these amendments. The Interpretation Act 1937 provides that in the absence of contrary intention, "person" includes the body corporate. The advice of the Attorney General is that the long title of the Freedom of Information Act which refers to members of the public contains such a contrary intention. The Act provides a right of access to records for natural persons, namely,...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I will not accept this amendment as it seems to negate the purpose of the Bill. There is no reason the tax strategy group papers will not be released.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: As the Senator knows, even in the tax strategy group papers, anything that relates to an ongoing process is deleted before the documents are released. While I cannot remember what the latest tax strategy group papers included or excluded, I am sure they contained sections that were blanked out. The tax strategy group papers were never released in total if they referred to on-going...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: If it were down to the Government, they would be records of Government but they are not at the moment.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: This amendment, which has been suggested by the Information Commissioner, is not being accepted. It would mean, in effect, that a public body would not be obliged to consult with a person prior to making a final decision to release the personal information of that person to some other person, where a public body has decided it would benefit the individual to release the information concerned....

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I will not accept this amendment which would empower the Minister for Finance to allow for provisions in other enactments that authorise or require the non-disclosure of records in the Third Schedule to the Freedom of Information Act. The effect of including the provision in the Third Schedule is that the FOI Act overrides provisions where requests are made under that Act.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I will not accept an amendment to retain the requirement for notice of a delegation under section 4(5) of the principal Act to be published in Iris Oifigiúil. Details of the delegations made by the heads of bodies that come under the Freedom of Information Act are published in the annual report of the Minister as detailed under section 15 of the principal Act. Also, as set out under section...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: The purpose of this provision is not to restrict information, but to achieve clarity. The meaning of the term "relate to" in section 6(5)(b) of the principal Act has already been the subject of an appeal under the Freedom of Information Act to the High Court in the case of E. H. v. the Information Commissioner. My officials have summarised a copy of the High Court judgment, but Senator...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: The Senator is not correct. At the moment, some requests are being refused because of the way the law is being interpreted. The new Bill does not limit the scope of information that will be made available.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: Where does that end?

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: To which section does it directly refer?

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: The purpose of the section is to ensure that where there is a refusal to confirm or deny the existence or non-existence of a record, the provisions of section 19, 20 or 21 of the Bill are invoked. Public bodies are not obliged to disclose the existence or non-existence of such a record in a notification to a requester. The amendment is consequential on amendments proposed to sections 19, 20...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: The ordinary running of the Act is what has happened in the meantime. It was agreed in 1997 that it would be reviewed after a number of years. Problems have arisen with various sections. The Senator has referred to the difficulty of deciding such matters. Senator McDowell, for example, asked who decided in the public interest. All of these matters are subjective to some extent. Question,...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I will not be accepting this amendment. I am not convinced there are grounds for restricting the period of time, to 12, 24 or some other period, for which a public body can invoke the provision whereby failure to pay a fee properly charged under freedom of information can constitute grounds for the refusal of a request. This would serve unduly to restrict a public body in taking unreasonable...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I do not accept the amendment. Regarding the general question of fees, they will be reasonable fees and will be regulated. I take on board what Senators have said about various categories. However, it is my experience in all areas of public life that when something is free, it is abused. Senator Higgins comes from a part of the country I know well and he will agree with me on this point....

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: Even a nominal charge would lead to less abuse of services. I am strongly of that principle – Senator McDowell is not, as I know from the Dáil. Services that are free in the public service tend to be abused. That is my overriding raison d'être in all these areas. Anything that is free will be simply abused, not just in Ireland but throughout the world.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I did not say that.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I second the amendment. Mr. McCreevy: I do not accept this amendment. I note it suggests a similar amendment with a view to limiting the ability of a public body to refuse access to records, in a particular form or manner, where doing so would involve an infringement of copyright. This amendment raises an important legal issue as to whether or not a public body can effectively...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Charlie McCreevy: I understand that this amendment is related to the Information Commissioner's comments on pages 76 and 77. Accepting this amendment would provide a right under FOI to have a record containing personal information amended where release of the record concerned is provided for outside the scope of the Act. The FOI Act does not apply to records that are already available through other means. This...