Freedom of Information: The Law, the Practice and the Ideal (Law in Context) - Hardcover

Birkinshaw, Patrick

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0521888026 ISBN 13: 9780521888028

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2010

Synopsis

Enacted in 2000 and in operation in the UK since 2005, the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act has revealed information which has generated calls for constitutional reform. A massive 'information jurisprudence' has developed through the decisions of the Information Commissioner, the Information Tribunal and the courts. Governments' responses to the war on terror have involved increased resort to claims of national security and accompanying secrecy, but these developments have to exist alongside demands for FOI and transparency. FOI has to balance access to and protection of personal information, and major amendments have been made to the Data Protection Act in order to balance the competing demands of transparency and privacy. This detailed discussion of FOI laws and personal data laws examines the historical development of secrecy, national security and government, and their modern context.

About this title

Book Description:

Freedom of Information (FOI) laws have generated calls for constitutional reform. Pressures for national security and secrecy must be balanced alongside demands for FOI. This detailed discussion of FOI laws and personal data laws examines the historical development of secrecy, national security and government, and their modern context.

From the Back Cover:

This book examines the relationship between law, political culture and information control and combines a technical knowledge of English Law, a detailed account of the history of political secrecy in Britain and an informed acquaintance with the shady detail of political and administrative practice.

About this edition

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0521888026
• ISBN 13: 9780521888028
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 4
• Number of pages: 578