Is Rishi Sunak's Tory Party the most secretive ever?
Under Rishi Sunak, government transparency has reached an all time low with new government data revealing 2023 was the worst year for granting freedom of information (FOI) requests.
The Prime Minister has been accused of presiding over the most secretive government ever, with only 34% of resolvable FOIs granted in full, down 5% from 2022. Investigative journalist Peter Geoghegan said this drop matched the previous largest ever drop in a single year, in 2014.
This is the lowest figure since monitoring began in 2005, the government’s own data analysis has said, and reflects a growing drop in the granting of FOIs under the Tory Party.
In comparison the figure was 41% under Boris Johnson, 46% under Theresa May, 56% under David Cameron and 60% when Gordon Brown was Prime Minister.
Across all bodies, 81% of requests were responded to on time which was a 5% fall from the year previous. Michael Gove’s Department for Housing and Levelling Up and the Department for Environment and Rural Affairs were found to be the most secretive government departments last year, granting just 19% in full.
The Foreign Office followed with only 20% granted and the Cabinet Office just 24%. This compared to the year’s best, the Wales Office, which granted 84% of requests in full.
Media personality Carol Vorderman said the Tories had “trashed Nolan Principles in every conceivable way” as she accused the government of being the most secretive ever.
There are concerns that the UK’s FOI system is being increasingly undermined by under-resourcing and deliberate attempts by government departments not to comply. MPs, campaigners and journalists signed an open letter in 2022 warning that FOIs were being undermined by government departments obstructing requests, as they demanded more resources for FOI caseworkers.
Peter Geoghegan, who writes the substack Democracy for Sale, has reported on the backlash from opposition MPs who have accused the government of attempting to “cover up” their failures. Lib Dem MP Layla Moran said “the whole thing stinks of a cover up”.
(Image credit: Rory Arnold / Number 10 – Creative Commons)
Hannah Davenport is news reporter at Left Foot Forward
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