What Else is UK Brexit Department Hiding From Brits After FOI Requests Ignored?

The Institute for Government (IFG) has revealed the department led by Britain's Brexit secretary David Davis failed to respond to more than six out of 10 Freedom of Information (FOI) requests over the past year — the highest figure reported of any UK department.

Research carried out buy the IFG — an independent charity working to increase government effectiveness — found a "broader picture of government opacity" — in particular among those related to Britain's departure from the European bloc.

The figures come just days after Mr. Davis narrowly escaped a charge of contempt of parliament after appearing to elude about a series of reports assessing the potential impact of Brexit on key sectors including the economy, manufacturing and engineering which never actually existed. 

He could now face further questions, however, over the number of times the Department for exiting the European Union (DExEU) fully withheld information requested over the past year.

Hiding Something?

The reluctance by the cabinet minister to release requested information has been described as "shocking" and has given rise to claims he may be trying to hide something.

In an interview, Peter Stefanovic, a journalist and filmmaker, said it was abhorrent a UK government department has refused to answer Freedom of Information requests.

"The failure to respond to more than six out of 10 freedom of information requests over the past year is shocking, the worst annual record for secrecy in Whitehall and begs the question what is Davis hiding!" he told Sputnik.

"He says he makes decisions based on the evidence and now we are told he hasn't obtained any Brexit impact assessments at all, it goes way beyond incompetence, it's simply negligent," the political commentator added.

What Impact Studies?

Mr. Stefanovic said the UK government minister has repeatedly boasted that between 50 and 58 sectoral impact assessment have been carried out by his department.

"He has even gone, so far, as saying the prime minister won't have read them all because 'they are in excruciating detail". Parliament voted that these impact reports must be published and suddenly they were never done! You just couldn't make this up!" he told Sputnik.

"He now admits they don't really exist, they were never done. Yet the committee says he can't be in contempt for failing to produce something that never existed even though he's been swanning about for months telling us they do. It's one of those jokes that just makes you want to cry" Mr.Stefanovic added.

Poor performance

Gavin Freeguard, the IFG's head of data and transparency, confirmed the Brexit department had the worse record than most other government departments.

"This poor performance is part of a much broader picture of government opacity when it comes to Brexit. We have yet to see any serious impact assessments from departments, and are still waiting for white papers that were due to be published before the summer," he said.

Harm negotiating position

Figures show the Brexit department responded to just 18 percent of FOI cases in full, closely followed by the Foreign Office and Department of Trade which provided all the requested data in almost a quarter of cases.

A DExEU spokesperson defended its figures, insisting the lack of data being provided were for good reasons. "The department's purpose is to negotiate our successful exit from the European Union, and therefore a significant amount of our work is sensitive. We always strive to balance our commitment to transparency with the need to protect sensitive information that could affect our negotiating position," a spokesperson said.