The Impact of the Freedom of Information Act on Central Government in the UK: Does FOI Work? (Understanding Governance)

Cover......Page 1
Contents......Page 8
Figures......Page 14
Tables......Page 16
Notes on Contributors......Page 18
Foreword......Page 19
Abbreviations and Acronyms......Page 21
Part I: Freedom of Information in Theory......Page 24
Systematic evaluation of Freedom of Information......Page 26
The systematic evaluation of government policy......Page 27
Difficulties of evaluation 1......Page 29
Difficulties of evaluation 2......Page 31
Difficulties of evaluation 3......Page 33
Difficulties of evaluation 4......Page 35
Limits of this study......Page 36
Conclusion......Page 37
Introduction......Page 38
Freedom of Information: problems of interpretation......Page 39
Freedom of Information: ends and means......Page 40
Freedom of Information: objectives in other regimes......Page 51
Conclusion......Page 55
Introduction......Page 56
The Whitehall model......Page 57
Freedom of Information and Whitehall......Page 60
Characteristics under threat?......Page 62
The institutions in question......Page 65
Freedom of Information in other Westminster-style systems......Page 67
Conclusion......Page 72
How do others measure Freedom of Information?......Page 74
Official literature......Page 75
Interviews......Page 76
Requesters......Page 78
Media analysis......Page 79
Information Commissioner and Information Tribunal case law......Page 81
Conclusion......Page 82
Part II: Freedom of Information in Practice......Page 84
Introduction......Page 86
Requesters and requests......Page 87
The request process......Page 90
The appeal process......Page 101
Conclusion......Page 108
What is transparency?......Page 110
Measuring transparency......Page 111
Other factors influencing transparency......Page 112
Has more information been released?......Page 115
Freedom of Information and transparency elsewhere......Page 125
Conclusion......Page 126
Introduction......Page 128
History and development of Whitehall secrecy......Page 129
Impact on Whitehall’s ‘culture of secrecy’......Page 131
Conclusion......Page 138
Introduction......Page 140
Pressures for accountability......Page 141
Increased accountability......Page 143
Increase in accountability......Page 144
Accountability to whom and for what......Page 151
Freedom of Information: accountability elsewhere......Page 153
Conclusion......Page 154
Introduction......Page 157
What is civil service neutrality?......Page 158
The ‘threat’ to civil service neutrality......Page 159
Effects on civil service anonymity......Page 160
Effects on civil service impartiality......Page 165
Conclusion......Page 169
Introduction......Page 171
Defining the convention......Page 172
Threats to ministerial accountability to Parliament......Page 173
Complications to the convention......Page 174
Impacts on ministerial accountability......Page 175
Conclusion......Page 183
Introduction......Page 184
Impact on decision-making in theory......Page 185
Disaggregating the impact of Freedom of Information from other factors......Page 186
Impacts on decision-making and effective government......Page 187
Establishing causation......Page 199
Conclusion......Page 202
Introduction......Page 204
The classic system of Cabinet government......Page 205
Changes to the Cabinet system......Page 207
State of the convention in law, case law and media......Page 208
Impact on the Cabinet system......Page 216
Cabinet system: ministerial veto on Iraq war minutes......Page 219
Conclusion......Page 221
Introduction......Page 223
Understand government decision-making?......Page 224
Measuring the impact on understanding of decision-making......Page 225
Government’s move towards greater explanation......Page 226
Understanding of government decision-making increased?......Page 227
Public understanding of government decision-making not increased?......Page 231
Decrease in understanding of government?......Page 232
Understanding elsewhere......Page 234
Conclusion......Page 236
The concept of trust......Page 237
Freedom of Information and trust......Page 238
Trust in government in the United Kingdom......Page 239
Does trust in government increase?......Page 241
Is there a silent majority?......Page 249
Access to information and trust elsewhere......Page 250
Conclusion......Page 251
What is political participation?......Page 253
Measuring the impact on participation......Page 254
Political participation in the United Kingdom......Page 255
Governments’ attempts to increase participation......Page 256
Has political participation increased?......Page 257
Limitations of the impact on political participation......Page 259
Interest and participation......Page 262
Public participation elsewhere......Page 263
Conclusion......Page 266
What has Freedom of Information achieved?......Page 267
Why has Freedom of Information not achieved more?......Page 268
The unintended consequences of Freedom of Information......Page 271
Freedom of Information and the political context......Page 273
Freedom of Information was oversold......Page 275
The media’s crucial role......Page 277
The fears of Freedom of Information were overstated......Page 278
Comparison with other countries......Page 280
Iron laws of Freedom of Information......Page 281
Paradoxes and myths of Freedom of Information......Page 284
Challenges for Freedom of Information in the future......Page 286
Challenges for policy-makers: Freedom of Information in a cold climate......Page 287
So was Freedom of Information worth it?......Page 289
Use of Freedom of Information......Page 291
Amount of Information disclosed......Page 292
The veto......Page 293
Political support......Page 294
Conclusion......Page 296
2 In what capacity are they using Freedom of Information?......Page 298
3 What do they want to know?......Page 299
4 What did they do with the information they received?......Page 300
5 What did requesters think of Freedom of Information?......Page 301
Conclusion......Page 303
Arnstein’s ladder of participation......Page 304
Our ladder......Page 306
4.1 Interviews......Page 308
4.2 Questions from the online survey of requesters......Page 310
4.3 Media Analysis......Page 314
Appendix 5: Glossary of Freedom of Information Terms......Page 318
Notes......Page 321
Bibliography......Page 322
Index......Page 342