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Labour Commitments to FOI The Campaign for Freedom of Information Suite 102, 16 Baldwins Gardens, London EC1N 7RJ Tel: 020 7831 7477 Fax: 020 7831 7461 Email: [email protected] Web: www.cfoi.org.uk Labour Commitments to Freedom of Information 12 September 2000 rev. 2.0 Hon. President: Godfrey Bradman Parliamentary Co-Chairs: Helen Jackson MP Co-Chairs: James Cornford, Neil McIntosh Archy Kirkwood MP Director: Maurice Frankel Richard Shepherd MP Campaign for Freedom of Information Ltd. Registered in England no. 1781526. Registered office as above Labour Commitments to Freedom of Information General Election Manifesto Pledges October 1974 Promised to “replace the Official Secrets Act by a measure to put the burden on the public authorities to justify withholding information.” April 1979 “In central Government, we will... Introduce a Freedom of Information Bill to provide a system of open government, and enact proposals made by the Government in its White Paper to reform Section Two of the Official Secrets Act.” June 1983 “Labour will take action to enhance democratic rights and ensure greater openness and accountability in the institutions of government... We shall introduce a Freedom of Information Bill, providing for a genuine system of open government and placing the onus on the authorities to justify withholding information.” June 1987 “…the new Parliament will swiftly enact many…worthwhile measures. These will cost little to implement but produce significant improvement in the quality of administration, provision and response to the needs of ordinary citizens. They will include: A Freedom of Information Act, to be accompanied by the repeal of Section Two of the Official Secrets Act.” March 1992 “We will start in our first parliamentary session with a Freedom of Information Act which will open up government to the people. Exceptions will be tightly drawn.” April 1997 Introduction by Tony Blair: “Labour is committed to the democratic renewal of our country through decentralisation and the elimination of excessive government secrecy.” “We are pledged to a Freedom of Information Act, leading to more open government.” Labour Policy Documents December 1997 “This White Paper explains our proposals for meeting another key pledge - to legislate for freedom of information, bringing about more open government. The traditional culture of secrecy will only be broken down by giving people in the United Kingdom the legal right to know. This fundamental and vital change in the relationship between government and governed is at the heart of this White Paper.” Preface by Tony Blair, ‘Your Right to Know’, Cm 3818 December 1997 “This White Paper marks a watershed in the relationship between the government and the people of the United Kingdom. At last there is a government ready to trust the people with a legal right to know. This right is central to a mature democracy… It is a new balance with the scales now weighted decisively in favour of openness.” Foreword by David Clark, ‘Your Right to Know, Cm 3818’ 2 September 1996 “Government is too secretive. Too many decisions are taken behind closed doors without proper consultation with the public. Government then rushes new laws through Parliament and bad legislation is passed. People want to be better informed about what government is up to, and be consulted more. New rules on government openness are needed.” “We will introduce a Freedom of Information Act to stop unnecessary secretiveness in government. This will establish a general right of access to official information held by national, regional and local public bodies, including quangos....” New Politics New Britain: Restoring Trust in the way we are Governed, by Jack Straw, Doug Henderson and Derek Foster September 1991 “The Labour government will introduce a package of reforms designed to strengthen editorial independence, including a Freedom of Information Act and the replacement of the Official Secrets Act.” Arts and Media: Our Cultural Future January 1991 “Labour will introduce a Freedom of Information Act which establishes a general right of access to official information held by national regional and local governments and by public and statutory bodies.” The Charter of Rights Freedom of Information Bills promoted by Labour MPs November 1998 Freedom of Information Bill, introduced by Labour MP Andrew Mackinlay. Labour sponsors included Dr David Clark, Mark Fisher, Chris Mullin, Tony Wright, Rhodri Morgan and Ronnie Campbell June 1992 Right to Know Bill, introduced by Labour MP Mark Fisher. Labour sponsors included Clare Short, Chris Smith, Alistair Darling, Jeff Rooker and Clive Soley February 1992 Right to Information Bill, Labour front bench bill introduced by Robin Corbett. Sponsors included Neil Kinnock, Roy Hattersley, Alistair Darling, Stuart Randall, Joan Lestor, Eric Illsley and Andrew Bennett December 1991 Freedom of Information Bill, introduced by Archy Kirkwood (Lib). Labour sponsors included Chris Smith and Jeff Rooker July 1984 Freedom of Information (No 2) Bill, introduced by David Steel (Lib). Labour sponsors included Bruce George and Robin Corbett January 1981 Freedom of Information Bill, introduced by Labour MP Frank Hooley. Labour sponsors included Robin Cook, Michael Meacher, Jeff Rooker, Christopher Price and Philip Whitehead July 1979 Freedom of Information Bill, introduced by Michael Meacher. Labour sponsors included Robin Cook, Christopher Price and Phillip Whitehead January 1979 Official Information Bill, introduced by Clement Freud (Lib). Labour sponsors included Robin Cook and Jeff Rooker 3 July 1978 Official Information Bill, introduced by Robin Cook. Labour sponsors included Jeff Rooker, Jo Richardson, Robert Kilroy-Silk, Max Madden, Christopher Price, Ronald Atkins, George Cunningham and Tom Litterick December 1977 Freedom of Information Bill, introduced by Labour MP Ronald Atkins. Labour sponsors included Robin Cook, Robin Corbett, Tom Litterick and Dennis Canavan February 1977 Freedom of Information and Privacy Bill introduced by Labour MP Tom Litterick. Ministerial Statements Tony Blair, Prime Minister 10/10/97 “The new Labour Government is committed to a major decentralisation and devolution of power across the United Kingdom, as well as to a Freedom of Information Act. I believe that by bringing decision-making closer to the people, we will be better able to protect their fundamental rights and freedoms.” Speech at the Council of Europe Summit, Strasbourg 20/2/97 “We also propose a Freedom of Information Act to open up our secretive processes. After the Scott inquiry, can anyone be in any serious doubt that such an Act is necessary?” Opposition Day debate on the constitution 14/9/96 “The case for a Freedom of Information Act and the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights into British law is now generally agreed outside the Conservative Party and even by some within it.” The Economist Summer 1996 “It is time to sweep away the cobwebs of secrecy which hang over far too much government activity. If trust in the people means anything then there can be no argument against a Freedom of Information Act.” Progress Magazine 25/3/96 “...I think it is true to say that... the efforts of the Campaign have kept this issue high on the political agenda and we now have a situation where action on this issue is supported by four voters in five. It is not some isolated constitutional reform that we are proposing with a Freedom of Information Act. It is a change that is absolutely fundamental to how we see politics developing in this country over the next few years... When a health scare like BSE occurs, the public want to know the facts, people want to know what the scientific advice is in full, and they need to be sure that the public interest has always come first. They want to know if there was any relaxation of regulations which resulted in public safety being compromised. They want to know what the risks are and whether the food they eat and the food they feed to their children is safe, and they want to know how to find out. And the whole sorry saga of how this matter has been handled has resulted in the loss of public trust in government. It is because we have given so many absolute assurances in the past, so categorically, without necessarily providing the information to back it up that there is such little faith in what is said now. The 4 only way to begin to restore people’s trust is therefore to be completely open about what the risks are... The crucial question is does the government regard people’s involvement in politics as being restricted to periodic elections? Or, does it regard itself as in some sense in a genuine partnership with people? And the government’s attitude to what it is prepared to tell people and the knowledge it will share with them says a great deal about where it stands on that matter. My argument is that if a government is genuine about wanting a partnership with the people who it is governing, then the act of government itself must be seen in some sense as a shared responsibility and the government has to empower the people and give them a say in how that politics is conducted. In today’s world, I believe that there is a limit to what government can do, and the power of society or community to act and to influence the lives of the individuals within it depends on a far more diverse and diffuse set of relationships than, if you like, a concept of government that would have been more natural or more easily explicable forty or fifty years ago. I don’t believe it is possible for government to govern effectively now, unless it governs in some sense in a relationship of partnership with the people whom it is governing. It is one of the reasons why decentralisation of power is actually in the interests of government.
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