6.1 Section 46(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, 1997 provides a right only with regard to records which relate to the general administration of the Office. This in effect means that records concerning criminal prosecution files are not accessible under the FOI Act.
6.2 The Office continues to make FOI information available as readily as possible with our revised section 15 and 16 Reference Book widely available both in public libraries throughout the country and on our website at http://www.dppireland.ie/. This publication outlines the business of the Office including the types of records kept.
6.3 The FOI Unit can be contacted by telephone or by e-mail at foi@dppireland.ie. This e-mail address can be used for general queries on FOI but cannot be used to submit a request where an application fee is required.
| Refused under section 46(1)(b) |
7 |
|---|---|
| Withdrawn/dealt with outside of FOI |
3 |
| Requests Granted |
2 |
| TOTAL REQUESTS |
12 |
6.4 During 2005 a total of twelve requests were submitted to the Office. Seven of the twelve requests were refused under the Act and three requests were withdrawn or dealt with outside of FOI. Two requests were granted in full. The reason for the refusals was that the records sought did not relate to the general administration of the Office.
6.5 One of the requests was submitted by a journalist, the other eleven requests were by the general public with ten requests relating to criminal files.
6.6 In the seven cases where requests were refused, the person making the request sought an internal review of the original decision. In all cases the original decision was upheld. Two requesters then appealed the decision to the Information Commissioner who also upheld the original decisions.
| Journalists |
1 |
|---|---|
| General Public |
11 |
| Requests for Internal Review |
3 |
|---|---|
| Requests to the Information Commissioner for Review |
2 |