Freedom of Information

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    Limerick City Council is subject to: Directive 2003/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 November 2003 on the re-use of public sector information and to the European Communities (Re-Use of Public Sector Information) Regulations 2005 (SI 279 of 2005) which transpose the Directive into Irish law and which came into force on 1st July 2005. (these documents can be obtained on www.psi.gov.ie ).

The Freedom of Information Act 1997 applies to all Local Authorities since 21st October 1998. It established three new statutory rights:

• 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 to obtain reasons for decisions affecting oneself
• Since 11th April, 2003, Freedom Of Information requests are processed in accordance with the provisions of the Freedom Of Information Acts 1997 and the Freedom Of Information (Amendment) Act 2003.

How to apply for information under Freedom of Information Act:

You are entitled to apply for access to information in writing, either in the form of a letter or by standard application form.

You have a right to access to the following records held by or under the control of Limerick City Council unless such records are exempted under the Act:

• all records created after commencement of this Act i.e. 21st October, 1998
• such records created before that date as may be required to understand records created after commencement of the Act.
• personal records regardless of when created.
• If you are a staff member, personnel records created from a date 3 years before commencement of the Act.
• access to reasons for decisions made by Limerick City Council directly affecting you.
• seek correction of personal information relating to you, held by Limerick City Council where it is incorrect, incomplete, or misleading.

Application process

Your request should be in writing and should indicate that the information is sought under the Freedom of Information Act.

If you wish to receive the information in any particular form e.g. photocopy, computer disk etc., you should indicate this in your request.

Please give as much detail as possible to enable us to identify the records to which you require access.

Please include a daytime telephone number so that you can be contacted if it is necessary to clarify details of your request. You may be required to prove your identity, especially when requesting personal information.

We must issue acknowledgment of your request within two weeks of our receiving it.

We must make a decision on your request within four weeks of our receiving it, unless the request relates to such number of records that compliance within the specified time is not reasonably possible, in which case a time extension not exceeding a further four weeks may be allowed. You must be notified of the period of the time extension required and the reasons therefore.

Applications for information under this Act should be addressed to:

Freedom of Information Officer

Phone: (061) 407100
Fax: (061) 415266
email: foi@limerickcity.ie

Opening hours:
Monday to Friday 9.00am - 5.00pm

Address:
Freedom of Information Officer
3rd Floor,
City Hall,
Merchants Quay,
Limerick City,
IRELAND

Internal Review

The Freedom of Information Act sets out appeal mechanisms in the event of a refusal of a request, or in relation to deferral of access, charges, form of access etc., Details of these appeal mechanisms are as follows:

You may seek Internal Review of the initial decision, which will be carried out by an official of Limerick City Council at a higher level than made the initial decision, if:

• you are dissatisfied with the initial response received i.e. refusal of information, form of access, charges etc.; or,
• you have not received a reply within four weeks of your initial application. This is deemed to be a refusal of your request and allows you to proceed to Internal Review.

Limerick City Council must complete the review within three weeks. Internal Review must normally be completed before an appeal may be made to the Information Commissioner.

Requests for Internal Review should be submitted, within four weeks of the initial decision, in writing to:

Kieran Lehane,
Director of Service,
Limerick City Council,
City Hall,
Limerick.

Phone : (061) 415799
Fax : (061) 418342
Email : klehane@limerickcity.ie

Review by the Information Commissioner

You may seek independent review by the Information Commissioner if :

• following completion of the Internal Review procedure, you are dissatisfied with the decision; or,
• you have not received a reply to your request for Internal review within 3 weeks of your application. This is deemed to be a refusal and you may appeal the matter to the Commissioner.

Appeals in writing may be made directly to the Information Commissioner at the following address:

Office of the Information Commissioner,
18, Lower Leeson Street,
Dublin 2.
Phone: (01) 6785222
Fax: (01) 6610570
Email: ombudsman@ombudsman.irlgov.ie

Fees

Fees may be charged as follows:

• In respect of personal records, fees in respect of the cost of copying the records.
• In respect of other(non-personal) information, fees may be charged in respect of the time spent in efficiently locating and copying records, based on a standard hourly rate.
• No charges may apply in respect of time spent by the local authority in considering your request.

A deposit may be payable where the total fee is likely to exceed €50.78. In these circumstances, you may request assistance from our staff to amend your request so as to reduce or eliminate the amount of the deposit.