Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Question 1037: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason he has refused to release the Departmental file on a person (details supplied); his views on whether putting such information into the public domain would contribute to an accurate historical record of this important period in the history of the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1636/07]

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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Question 1040: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason requested information was withheld from the producers of a television documentary (details supplied) by his Department; if the information will be made available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1906/07]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1037 and 1040 together.

Under the National Archives Act, the Minister for Foreign Affairs has no involvement in determining which files should be withheld; that is entirely a matter for the authorised officer of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The Department is committed to meeting its statutory obligations in regard to its historic files under the National Archives, the Data Protection and the Freedom of Information Acts. In this regard, its annual deposit of files to the National Archives is much the largest of any Government Department and it also sponsors the "Documents in Irish Foreign Policy" series, published by the Royal Irish Academy.

In carrying out its archival duties, the Department must nevertheless comply with the provisions of the National Archives Act governing the withholding from inspection of certain records. In this regard, it should be noted that only a small proportion of these are actually withheld.

The files which are the subject of the Deputies' questions were part of a series of consular files originally withheld from the National Archives in 1992; all of them deal with named individuals and contain personal details. They were withheld under Section 8 (4) of the National Archives Act, 1986 on the basis that (a) to make the records available for public inspection would or might constitute a breach of good faith on the ground that they contain information supplied in confidence, or (b) would or might cause distress or danger to living persons on the ground that they contain information about individuals. In accordance with the provisions of the Act, the decision to withhold was certified by the authorised officer in the Department of Foreign Affairs and was consented to by an officer in the Department of the Taoiseach.

In September 2006 a request from the media was received to make the material available for public inspection. The relevant files were again reviewed by the authorised officer in my Department. It was concluded that there was no basis to change the original decision withholding these files. In addition, it was further determined that the files in question contained information of a personal nature about individuals, to which the provisions of the Data Protection Act, 1988 may also apply. For these reasons, the authorised officer decided to uphold the original decision taken in 1992.

In handling Departmental files that are over 30 years old, I am conscious that there ought to be an appropriate balance between the need to release material that is of public and historic interest and the right of individuals to be protected from distress or danger that the release of personal information might cause. In this regard, I have now asked my officials to carry out a further review of the historic files in question. In carrying out this review, my officials will consult, as appropriate, with other relevant bodies, including the Department of the Taoiseach and the National Archives.