Has the Purpose of the NSW FOI Legislation Been Defeated By the Obstacles to its Use?

Mark Haywood

1994 (Wol) 4 AAL

Since enactment, both the Commonwealth and NSW pieces of FOI legislation have undergone a number of amendments, insertions and substitutions in order to eliminate perceived obstructions to the primary objectives of the Act. The author argues that although this objective has been accomplished to an extent, the current legislation nevertheless contains a number of barriers. The paper analyses and looks to the effect of these perceived obstacles ( namely the exemptions and exceptions, attitudes toward disclosure and discretion and the costs associated with accessing the information ). A number of counter measures are briefly presented.