BBC News | UK POLITICS | Welsh cabinet minutes to go online

BBC News Online: UK Politics

Wednesday, 15 March, 2000, 15:56 GMT

Welsh cabinet minutes to go online

Welsh Assembly First Secretary Rhodri Morgan has pledged to make the principality's devolved administration "the most open government system in the western world" by publishing cabinet minutes on the internet.

Mr Morgan's proposals for freedom of information go beyond those currently contained in the main Freedom of Information Bill going through Parliament at Westminster.

"We want to be the most open government system in the western world.
Rhodri Morgan

Announcing the move, Mr Morgan said that cabinet meeting minutes would be available six weeks after they had taken place.

The first secretary said that the move would prevent secretive civil servants from withholding information unless they would prove that "substantial harm" would be caused by its release.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Morgan said that the new rules would be based on a white paper produced in 1997 by the former Cabinet Office minister David Clark.

Freedom of Information campaigners have criticised the government, saying that the current Bill waters down many of Mr Clark's original proposals.

"What we are trying to do is internationally benchmark ourselves," said Mr Morgan.

"We want to be the most open government system in the western world.

We will look at the Home Office model and the Scottish Parliament model, but we think we can go to the model set out in the David Clark White Paper.

"Our circumstances are very different to those of the central UK Government, because we don't deal with security matters, Foreign Office matters and any matters of that kind.

"We are trying to see how far we can go with the principle of open government.

"As a minority administration, which by and large doesn't have responsibility for terribly sensitive topics, and as a new institution, which wants to break down the `them and us' barriers between governed and governing in Wales, we want to be sure we are taking the people with us in what we are doing.

"We can only do that if they have confidence in what is going on behind the curtain, by proving to them that there isn't a curtain there in the first place."

Westminster Bill

In Edinburgh, the Scottish Parliament's executive has pledged to bring forward freedom of information legislation specific to Scotland as part of the coalition deal between Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

Justice minister Jim Wallace said that the legislation would "tip the scales" in favour of openness and all public institutions, including the NHS and the police, would be subject to its provisions.

At Westminster, the Bill put forward by Home Secretary Jack Straw remains far more controversial.

Campaigners have accused Mr Straw of seeking to restrict the Bill's powers by the back door through an amendment to ban release of documents without parliamentary approval.

The Bill is currently passing its committee stages in the House of Commons and is expected to be law by the end of the year.

Related to this story:
Straw defends freedom bill (07 Dec 99 | UK Politics)
Bill to end 'culture of secrecy' (25 Nov 99 | Scotland)
Straw unveils information bill (22 Oct 99 | UK Politics)
Labour 'tightening up secrecy' - Tories (06 Dec 99 | UK Politics)
Minister denies information U-turn (11 Jan 00 | UK Politics)