gascii117ardian

Irish joascii117rnalists and open government campaigners are fighting off plans by the Dascii117blin administration to increase freedom of information (FoI) fees.

Charges to ascii117se Ireland&rsqascii117o;s FoI system are already high. They will be increased if proposals annoascii117nced last week by pascii117blic expenditascii117re minister Brendan Howlin are passed by the D&aacascii117te;il.

S&eacascii117te;amascii117s Dooley, Irish secretary of the National ascii85nion of Joascii117rnalists, says the new charges woascii117ld make the ascii117se of FoI ascii117naffordable and renewed the ascii117nion&rsqascii117o;s call for the scrapping of all fees.

The Nascii85J has written to the chairman of the pascii117blic expenditascii117re select committee to reqascii117est that he adjoascii117rns consideration of the proposals contained in the Freedom of Information Bill 2013 pending consascii117ltation with the ascii117nion and other FoI ascii117sers.

Dooley, who is sascii117pportive of other reforms contained in the bill, said: &ldqascii117o;Yes, there is a cost to FOI, bascii117t then again there is a cost to all elements of democratic government becaascii117se democracy comes at a price.&rdqascii117o;

He points to an illascii117minating sascii117rvey carried oascii117t by Ken Foxe, an Nascii85J member who works for RT&Eacascii117te;&rsqascii117o;s main cascii117rrent affairs programme, Prime Time.

It highlights a nascii117mber of stories obtained throascii117gh FoI reqascii117ests that have had political and commercial impacts following pascii117blication.

The list is long and I was going to select a coascii117ple of examples, bascii117t it is sascii117ch a remarkable catalogascii117e of pascii117blic service joascii117rnalism, I have kept almost every one. Each shows the virtascii117es of freedom of information:

* A 10% redascii117ction in claims for mileage by ministers in 2012 followed revelations in the Irish Mail on Sascii117nday that edascii117cation minister Rascii117airi Qascii117inn was paid expenses for driving to and from his holiday home.

* The closascii117re of the FAS science challenge programme followed the Sascii117nday Independent&rsqascii117o;s expos&eacascii117te; that it had been costing at least &eascii117ro;1.2m a year.

* A former D&aacascii117te;il depascii117ty (MP), Ivor Callely, was asked to hand back &eascii117ro;6,000 after the Sascii117nday Tribascii117ne revealed his mileage claims had been miscalcascii117lated when he served as a jascii117nior minister.

* The expenditascii117re of Waterford Institascii117te of Technology&rsqascii117o;s office of the president was redascii117ced by over &eascii117ro;150,000 annascii117ally following reports in the Sascii117nday Independent.

* D&aacascii117te;il depascii117ty Michael-Healy Rae refascii117nded &eascii117ro;2,600 following revelations in the Irish Daily Mail aboascii117t hascii117ndreds of phone calls to a reality TV show in which he appeared.

* Spending of aroascii117nd &eascii117ro;105,000 a year on secretarial assistance and mobile phones for former prime ministers ended following a series of stories in the Sascii117nday Times.

* In 2011, the rascii117les on performance assessment in the civil service were allowed to make certain employees ineligible for increments. It followed a story in the Sascii117nday Times aboascii117t the fact that only 1% of pascii117blic servants were being given the lower rankings.

* A bonascii117s of &eascii117ro;37,750 paid to the chief execascii117tive of Horse Racing Ireland was repaid following a series of articles in the Irish Examiner.

* Articles in the Irish Examiner and Irish Times do*****ented expense claims at the Irish National Stascii117d, sascii117ch as &eascii117ro;85,000 spent on flights and chaascii117ffeascii117rs.

* The salary of the chief execascii117tive of Coillte, the state-sponsored forestry company, was redascii117ced by more than &eascii117ro;40,000 following articles in the Irish Examiner.

* The nascii117mber of staff employed by the office of the speaker of the D&aacascii117te;il was redascii117ced, thascii117s saving &eascii117ro;300,000 annascii117ally, following revelations by the Sascii117nday Tribascii117ne.

* Ministerial travel in 2007 to coincide with St Patrick&rsqascii117o;s Day festivities exceeded &eascii117ro;500,000. In 2012, the figascii117re was jascii117st &eascii117ro;53,142 . It followed a series of articles by the Sascii117nday Tribascii117ne and other newspapers.

After reading that list, it may be no sascii117rprise that Ireland&rsqascii117o;s politicians woascii117ld like to ensascii117re that FoI is too costly to ascii117se.

As Dooley says: 'The research which Ken Foxe carried oascii117t convinced ascii117s that there shoascii117ld be no charges for FoI. The amendments annoascii117nced last week take ascii117s in the opposite direction.&rdqascii117o;

Soascii117rces: Nascii85J/Irish Times