The Freedom of Information (FOI) Acts 1997 - 2003 provides the following legal rights for seeking access to official information:
- A legal right for each person to access information held by public bodies.
- A legal right for each person to have official information relating to him/herself amended where it is incomplete, incorrect or misleading.
- A legal right for each person to obtain reasons for decisions effecting him/herself.
The Acts gives right of access (subject to exemptions) to:
- all records created after commencement of the Freedom of Information Act 1997 i.e. 21st October 1998.
- such records created before that date as may be required to understand records created after commencement of the Freedom of Information Act 1997.
- personal records regardless of when created.
- in the case of staff members, personnel records created from a date 3 years before commencement of the Freedom of Information Act 1997.
Making a Request
All FOI requests should be addressed to the Freedom of Information Officer. In order to be considered valid a request must:
- be made in writing
- state that the request is being made under the Freedom of Information Acts 1997 - 2003
- contain sufficient particulars in relation to the information concerned to enable the record to be identified
In addition the Freedom of Information (Fees) Regulations 2003 requires payment of a standard fee of €15 for the making of a request to access a record or records concerning non-personal information. A reduced fee of €10 applies if the person making such a request is covered by a medical card.
For assistance on making a Freedom of Information request contact the Human Resources Section at 071 96 50421 or e-mail: gdoyle@leitrimcoco.ie.
Re-use of Information
Click here for details on the re-use of Public-Sector information