Not to sound too arch, but UK Secretary of Justice Jack Straw has vetoed a Freedom of Information request to produce the minutes of legal discussions held in the runup to the Iraq War.
Despite a ruling from the Information Tribunal supporting the publication of the minutes, Straw chose a first-time ever veto rather than appeal. His "justification" leaves a lot to be desired:
"There is a balance to be struck between openness and maintaining aspects of our structure of democratic government," he said.
"The damage that disclosure of the minutes in this instance would do far outweighs any corresponding public interest in their disclosure."
Why do I feel like the damage would have more to do with the revelation that the Government was acting against the wishes of its people than a desire to protect the integrity of future Cabinet meetings?
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