Bermuda’s been waiting for the promised Public Access to Information law for many years now. Meanwhile, the list of countries moving ahead with such transparency laws grows and grows.
Barbados has now tabled a draft Freedom of Information law [pdf] that is going through consultation in public town meetings.
The humour in the situation is some local media allege that, after many official promises and delays, big chunks of the draft law were copied from Wikipedia and the World Bank website only days before it was released! This rush has raised many local suspicions about the law and its possible omissions.
But, I suppose we should count ourselves so lucky. A cynic might opine that Bermuda would pay an overseas consultant $500,000 to do the cutting and pasting, then exempt most Government activities from the law, finally hold an impromptu public consultation by invite only 5 minutes before the House vote, and then blame the UBP for its inadequacies.