§ Mr. Matthew TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the advantages and disadvantages of requiring applicants who want to make complaints to the Parliamentary Ombudsman under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information to ask an hon. Member to submit their complaints. [82263]
§ Mr. StrawThe White Paper, "Your Right to Know", included an assessment of the arrangements for complaints to the Parliamentary Ombudsman under the "Code of Practice on Access to Government Information" and concluded that successive Ombudsmen had proved effective in policing the Code. The White Paper also stated that, as part of our proposals for a Freedom of Information Act, the Government favoured a mechanism which is readily available and freely accessible. The draft Freedom of Information Bill, which I hope to publish shortly for consultation and pre-legislative scrutiny, is likely to propose a procedure which will allow a complainant to access the Information Commissioner directly, rather than through an hon. Member.