asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 3 December 2007 (WA 170), whether in negotiating the draft European Convention on Access to Official Documents they will seek to persuade the Council of Europe Steering Committee for Human Rights to include a general guarantee of the right of access to official documents; and [HL2375]

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 3 December 2007 (WA 170), whether in negotiating the draft European Convention on Access to Official Documents they will seek to persuade the Council of Europe Steering Committee for Human Rights to include a general right of access to information held by legislative bodies, judicial bodies and private bodies that exercise public functions; and [HL2376]

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 3 December 2007 (WA 170), whether in negotiating the draft European Convention on Access to Official Documents they will seek to persuade the Council of Europe Steering Committee for Human Rights to provide for access to an appellate authority to challenge a denial of access to information; and [HL2377]

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 3 December 2007 (WA 170), whether in negotiating the draft European Convention on Access to Official Documents they will seek to persuade the Council of Europe Steering Committee for Human Rights to specify in respect of which of the convention's provisions reservations may be made. [HL2378]

The convention should set an overarching framework of minimum standards, allowing parties to the convention to set out in their legal systems a more extensive right of access should they wish to do so. For example, the convention would give parties the option, rather than making it mandatory, of applying the convention to information held by legislative bodies, judicial bodies and private bodies that exercise public functions should they wish to do so. Courts and tribunals are not within the scope of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in respect of their judicial functions and the Government have no plans to bring them within scope. With regard to private bodies carrying out public functions Section 5 of the Freedom of Information Act provides the possibility of bringing such bodies within scope of the Act. The Government's consultation on Section 5 closed on 1 February 2008 and the Government are currently considering the responses to consultation.