FoI / FoIA meaning

In practice, FoI / FoIA refers to the statutory right to request access to recorded information held by public authorities (and information held for them by contractors or publicly owned companies), and to the handling of “FOI requests” by those bodies. In England & Wales and Northern Ireland, the regime is set out in the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), overseen by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). In Scotland, it is the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), overseen by the Scottish Information Commissioner. In Ireland, it is the Freedom of Information Act 2014, overseen by the Office of the Information Commissioner. “FoI/FoIA” is a descriptive shorthand; the legal rights and exemptions are defined in those statutes and related case law. Key features across jurisdictions include: a general right of access; a 20 working day time limit (subject to limited extensions); duties to confirm or deny holding information and to advise and assist; publication schemes; and exemptions (some absolute, some subject to a public interest test). Typical process: request, refusal (if applicable), internal review, then complaint to the relevant Commissioner and onward appeal (tribunal/court on points of law). Environmental information may instead fall under the EIR/EIRS/AIE regimes.