Costs at the forefront of FOI battle at home

Meanwhile back at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in Sydney, Matthew Moore and the Sydney Morning Herald have had three days trying to challenge a Federal agency refusal to grant a public interest rebate on fees for access to documents now 18 months old. See our earlier story.

Moore's account today of the hearing has the Government's key witness (a lawyer from an outside firm and not even a public servant) trying and failing to explain the calamitous events that would occur if these documents were published.

The reality is that claims like this are made every day and are rarely tested or publicised.

Good on the Herald for bringing the ridiculous nature of the assertions about the public interest to the attention of a broader audience.