Consultations of the Task Force with other Jurisdictions on their Access to Information Regimes

Sweden

Access to Information Regime

The Public Access to Information principle has been a fundamental tenet of Swedish law since 1776. This principle guarantees Swedish citizens the right to obtain access and insight into administrative documents and activities, with basic purposes of preventing corruption and the abuse of power from gaining a foothold, and promoting democracy by making it possible for the citizens to be well-informed about what is going on in the society, and thus to enable them to take part in public debate. Such public access makes it possible to observe how politicians and public officials are doing their jobs, and how public funds are being administered.¹

Sweden’s access law is administered on a department by department basis. There is no legislated timeframe to provide the information requested except “as soon as possible”. Departments can legally withhold some information under the provisions of the Secrecy Act, but must sever such information where possible and state reasons for refusing to disclose other information. The review process is two-tiered, an internal administrative review then to the Ombudsman on matters of process, while the appeals on matters of substance can be made, at no cost, to the general administrative courts and ultimately the Supreme Administrative Court.

The Swedish law is based upon an inherent tradition of open government that is generally taken for granted by both government and the public.

The Act provides for access to “official documents”. Official documents consist of any documents received or sent as well as the final form of any documents created by the government, including Cabinet documents. Draft versions of documents are not subject to the law. The law extends to e-mail messages and covers diaries, journals and ministerial public agendas (Ministers have both public and private agendas – there is no access to the private agendas). All public officials are required to contribute to a logbook of official documents received and sent. Where e-mail messages constitute official documents, they are printed out and stored in a paper file. The logbook is kept by the registrar of the department, where requesters apply for information. Journalists regularly check the register of documents. It is a violation of the Act to remove anything from this logbook and a Criminal Code offence to destroy public documents. Even secret documents have to be registered, but are not accessible. Since non-accessible documents are publicly registered, their existence is known.

Anyone, even a non-citizen, can ask for access to official documents. Documents can be requested electronically, although there is no right to an electronic response. Typically, responses are answered within one to two days but can take as little as a few hours. Access responses are typically this fast because the decision to disclose a document is made directly by the official who created or received it and is for a specific document entered in a logbook. The concept of a “fishing expedition” is totally foreign to the Swedish experience of access. Departments will routinely fax or e-mail the requested information. The only fees that can be charged are the costs of photocopying more than 10 pages. In practice, fees are seldom imposed because of the cost and difficulties in administering them.

Discussion papers and research papers on proposed legislative changes are made public. When government ministers meet, only the records of the final decisions are public – no notes are taken of the actual deliberations. Agendas of meetings of committees of ministers are made public the day before meetings.

There are no specialized access to information/privacy co-ordinators in the Swedish government, although all departments must have at least one individual to assist requesters. The level of support for access to information may vary from department to department but there is a heritage of open government in Sweden, particularly concerning the media, which is also the source of most access requests. There is no tradition of public service anonymity in Sweden.

Officials must apply an objective test in exempting information (i.e. consider what harm could occur if the document is disclosed). In disclosing personal health information, the requester must show that disclosure will not cause harm to any individuals or groups of people. There is no third party notification concerning disclosure, but information concerning third parties must be severed. When officials refuse to disclose information they must state the reason for the refusal, allowing the requester to appeal to court.

If a decision not to disclose information is appealed, an initial review is made at a higher level within the government agency, followed by a legal services review if need be. Complaints about process can be addressed to the Government Ombudsman (i.e. delays, fees or perceived improper questions about the purpose of a request). The Courts review matters of substance, usually through a paper hearing, without legal representation from parties, and without any costs for the complainant. According to Justice Department officials, the Court usually decides in favour of the complainant.

While most Swedish authorities and the media believe the current law works reasonably well, there is growing concern that new technology, such as e-mail, is making it more difficult to track and log documents. Sweden has joint committees made up of government officials and users to review the law on a continuing basis. A government Committee on Openness and Secrecy is now conducting a review of its legislation to make sure it remains as open as possible, in light of the impact of new technologies, differing European Union rules, privatization of government services, and situations where more than one government authority is involved in an issue. Sweden does not keep statistics on access requests made under the Freedom of the Press Act.

An Open Sweden campaign was started in November 2000 by the Minister for Democratic Issues and Public Administration. This initiative is intended to increase access and openness within the public sector. The campaign is in response to signals from the public, journalists, trade unions and professional organizations that inadequacies exist in terms of knowledge about the public access to information principle, and with respect to its application. Examples of such inadequacies include delays in connection with the release of official documents, improper invocations of secrecy and cases where employees do not feel at liberty to exercise the freedom of expression and communication freedom guaranteed them by law. There is a sense that many citizens have insufficient knowledge of these rights, making it difficult for those citizens to exercise them. The government believes that this type of openness is one of the cornerstones of a democratic society, and that it must continue to be so.

The objectives of the “Open Sweden campaign” are the better application of the public access to information principle, to cultivate public knowledge and awareness and to encourage involvement and debate. Civil servants throughout the entire public sector are targeted as well as senior officials, both politicians and public officials, and registry administrators.

¹Information on the Swedish legislation and the “Open Sweden” campaign may be found at www.oppnasverige.gov.se/se/?7319.