Public Access to Information Law – Update
In case this helps, following is some information followed by a draft letter:-
A total of 28 members of the public attended meetings aimed at providing information on the proposed legislation. Notice of the meetings was very limited and late.
November 30th is the deadline for making submissions to express your opinion on the proposed legislation - less than two weeks.
International experts and local law makers say that is absolutely essential that the public makes written submissions to express their opinions. In the Cayman Islands they received 100 submissions and it is hoped that Bermuda can do at least that many – hopefully we are at least that interested.
The law is not difficult to understand, though it does take time to go through it. For me the most useful reference was an analysis by Toby Mendel of the organization Article 19 ( Human Right to access information)
http://www.article19.org/pdfs/analysis/bermuda-submission-on-public-access-to-information-bill.pdf I will be contacting the Bermuda Bar Association to urge them to do an analysis to submit.
The process of implementation of PATI law is challenging in most jurisdictions simply because there has typically been little emphasis on effective records management. This is an ideal time for public authorities to get this area sorted out, but it does mean that it takes time to fully implement the law. Cayman did it in 18 months.
It is important to understand that not all documents or records are available for the public to examine, that in certain situations documents may actually cause harm if they are disclosed (personal medical records for example). Other documents might normally be exempt from the law, but upon review it could be considered that it will actually serve the public interest for them to be released (results of an environmental study for example)
For your convenience I have drafted a simple template (you will have to state your personal opinions in your own words) to get you started. No cheating on this!! I have only included 8 points though my own submission has 20. You are welcomed and encouraged to include other issues. This would give you a page and a half letter to submit to the Cabinet Office. Simply copy the text into a Word document and edit as you wish.
If you would like further information, please let me know and I hope you can find time to prepare a submission and urge friends and family to do the same.
The Cabinet Secretary
Re: PATI
The Cabinet Office
105 Front Street
Hamilton HM 12
pati@gov.bm To Whom It May Concern:
I refer to your request for submissions on the draft bill on Public Access to Information, dated October 15th, 2009. I understand that as of November 17th, 2009 the deadline for submissions is November 30th, 2009. While I am pleased that this legislation is due to come before our elected representatives, I would like to comment on the following:
Section 13 indicates that the law will not apply to records that were created prior to the coming into operation of the law. Both outside observers as well as many members of the Bermuda public believe that all records, regardless of when they were created, should be accessible. This is the most significant and far-reaching change that needs to be made.
Section 38 indicates that existing laws that prohibit disclosure will take precedence over the new PATI law. This would severely restrict the effectiveness of the new law and it is recommended that the PATI law should override existing non-disclosure laws.
Sections 5 & 6 provide guidance on the information statements that must be provided by public authorities. It would be useful for these sections to provide far more detailed expectations for information statements (or publication schemes) so that all government departments and authorities provide the same standard of information and that proactive disclosure is the norm. Budgets and expenditures should always be included.
Section 57 provides for an annual report and a formal review after two years, however, as is the case in Cayman, monthly reports on activities, made available to the public, would be most valuable.
The law should provide for access to information by simply inspecting the records, not only by receiving a copy or electronic version.
Section 21 - the proposed fee structure should be outlined in more detail. See the 2005 Discussion Paper for further information.
Section 30 prohibits access to records associated with deliberations and decision-making of public authorities, when in fact in a democracy this is a key aspect of allowing citizens to fully participate in public affairs. As per the 2005 Discussion Paper, the public should in fact be informed as to how and why important decisions are made.
Since it is understandable that implementation will be challenging, it is recommended thateach public authority identify (or hire) an information officer to oversee the process, at least in the short term.
Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this very important piece of legislation.
Sincerely,
