Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 338: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of requests under the Freedom of Information Acts received by his Department in each year from 2002 to 2005 and to date in 2006; the amount of money received in application fees for each year; the amount of money received in information retrieval fees for each year; the percentage of requests coming from journalists in each year; the percentage of retrieval fees that were charged to journalists rather than members of the public; the percentage of requests from journalists for which a retrieval fee was charged; the percentage of requests from members of the public for which a retrieval fee was charged; the average retrieval fee charged; the median retrieval fee charged; the number of cases in which the retrieval fee was waived; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33712/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The circumstances where a search and retrieval fee for a freedom of information request may be waived are set out in Sections 47(5) and (6) of the Freedom of Information Act 1997 and are as follows:

where the records refer to an issue of national importance and the release of the record would assist in the understanding of this issue, or

where the administration cost involved in processing a search and retrieval fee is greater than the actual fee chargeable. This administration cost is currently set in my Department at €15.

Records have not been kept of the number of cases where the fee has been waived in these circumstances.

The other information sought in the question is set out in the following table.