Published Wednesday, 30 January, 2008 at 10:55 AM
Premier
The Honourable Anna Bligh
Queenslanders urged to have their say on FOI
Premier Anna Bligh today welcomed the 200-page discussion paper from a panel reviewing Queensland’s Freedom of Information laws, and encouraged the public to have their say on making access to government information easier.
“The discussion paper from the panel chaired by Dr David Solomon canvasses a range of important issues, from the fundamental principles of FOI to the nuts and bolts of its administration, time and cost,” Ms Bligh said.
“Freedom of information is one of the pillars of a healthy democracy and Queensland already grants nearly 90% of applications for documents sought through FOI.
“That is comparable with other states, but I want to provide even greater accessibility and transparency.
“The challenge is to deliver on that commitment without compromising personal privacy or essential government functions.
“The responses to this discussion paper will go a long way towards ensuring we strike the right balance.”
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Kerry Shine urged Queenslanders to have their say on the important issues raised by the review panel.
“The Freedom of Information Act has served Queensland very well since 1992, but it was framed in a different era when the Internet, workplace computers and email communication were still in their infancy,” Mr Shine said.
“These new technologies have led to the creation of millions of government documents each year, so we need to be very much smarter about how we operate in the information age.
“That has raised a whole host of challenges in relation to how we manage this information so it can be readily identified and retrieved when requested.
“A lot of progress has already been made in improving protocols for managing information and records across government, and this review will build on that good work by reinventing our freedom of information laws for the twenty-first century.
The bottom line is that we want to make FOI more efficient and user friendly.”
Public submissions close on 7 March 2008 and the panel is scheduled to submit its final report and recommendations for cabinet consideration by the end of May.
Mr Shine said this would enable the government to introduce proposed changes to the state’s FOI laws before the end of the year.
The discussion paper can be accessed at www.foireview.qld.gov.au. To obtain a hard copy, call 3222 2309 or write to FOI Independent Review Panel, GPO Box 5236, Brisbane 4001.
30 January, 2008
Further inquiries: Premiers Office (07) 3224 4500
“The discussion paper from the panel chaired by Dr David Solomon canvasses a range of important issues, from the fundamental principles of FOI to the nuts and bolts of its administration, time and cost,” Ms Bligh said.
“Freedom of information is one of the pillars of a healthy democracy and Queensland already grants nearly 90% of applications for documents sought through FOI.
“That is comparable with other states, but I want to provide even greater accessibility and transparency.
“The challenge is to deliver on that commitment without compromising personal privacy or essential government functions.
“The responses to this discussion paper will go a long way towards ensuring we strike the right balance.”
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Kerry Shine urged Queenslanders to have their say on the important issues raised by the review panel.
“The Freedom of Information Act has served Queensland very well since 1992, but it was framed in a different era when the Internet, workplace computers and email communication were still in their infancy,” Mr Shine said.
“These new technologies have led to the creation of millions of government documents each year, so we need to be very much smarter about how we operate in the information age.
“That has raised a whole host of challenges in relation to how we manage this information so it can be readily identified and retrieved when requested.
“A lot of progress has already been made in improving protocols for managing information and records across government, and this review will build on that good work by reinventing our freedom of information laws for the twenty-first century.
The bottom line is that we want to make FOI more efficient and user friendly.”
Public submissions close on 7 March 2008 and the panel is scheduled to submit its final report and recommendations for cabinet consideration by the end of May.
Mr Shine said this would enable the government to introduce proposed changes to the state’s FOI laws before the end of the year.
The discussion paper can be accessed at www.foireview.qld.gov.au. To obtain a hard copy, call 3222 2309 or write to FOI Independent Review Panel, GPO Box 5236, Brisbane 4001.
30 January, 2008
Further inquiries: Premiers Office (07) 3224 4500