Downing Street Says » Black Wednesday/FOI

» Friday, February 4, 2005

Black Wednesday/FOI

Asked if the Prime Minister had been involved in discussions regarding the Black Wednesday/FOI meetings, and whether John Major or Lord Lamont been in contact with him, the PMS said that under the legislation, current Ministers did not look at papers relating to a previous administration before they were published. This FOI request had been dealt with by officials.

Asked if it was standard that such a request should go to previous Ministers, the PMS said yes. As with papers released under the thirty-year rule, documents would be sent to those involved with the situation at the time. There was nothing unusual about people who were mentioned in papers seeing them before they were published. These papers would be published, but it was a matter of courtesy, form and history that people who were mentioned would be shown them. She reiterated that current Ministers were not involved in this process.

Put to her that Sir Andrew Turnbull was involved, the PMS pointed out that Sir Andrew Turnbull was a civil servant.

1 Comment »

In 1990 my economics teacher wrote to The Times airing his views on entry into the ERM. He believed that we shouldn’t join, which a lot of people also thought, but of course, us the public who end up paying for the mess the government get us into, are never listened to. Imagine if we had been lisened to all the money we could have saved. But why change the habbit of a lifetime and listen to the people who might actually know something.
Comment by katie — 24 Feb 2005 on 2:10 pm | Link

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