FOI campaigners attack potential abolition of right to appeal to tribunal

The Campaign for Freedom of Information (CFOI) has expressed concern that the Government may be considering abolition of the right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal against decisions of the Information Commissioner.

The Government’s apparent move stems from a recommendation by the Commission on Freedom of Information, which was chaired by Lord Burns.

In a report published in March this year, the Commission recommended that “the government legislates to remove the right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal against decisions of the IC made in respect of the Act”.

The House of Commons Justice Committee in a report, Court and Tribunals Fees, subsequently endorsed the recommendation, stating: “We see no reason to disagree with the Commission’s views.” (The CFOI claimed the committee “does not appear to have examined the case for this change itself”).

Last week (9 November 2016) the Government published its formal response to the Justice Committee’s report, in which it said “this is one of a number of recommendations made by the Independent Commission that are being carefully considered.”

The CFOI said: “When the Commission’s report was published the Government gave an assurance there would be ‘no legal changes’ to the FOI Act. Abolishing the FTT would require such legislative changes.

“The FTT is a vital safeguard against poor decisions from the Information Commissioner. In 2014, some 20% of requester appeals to the FTT were wholly or partly successful. The Campaign believes that depriving requesters of this right of appeal would seriously weaken the public’s right to know.”