Twitter and Facebook is a two-way street, says Information Commissioner

Public sector organisations that use Twitter and Facebook cannot complain when citizens use the same social media to ask for information.

That was the message from Information Commissioner Christopher Graham in a speech marking 'International Right to Know Day 2011' and posted, social media stylee, on, of course, YouTube.

Graham recently made it clear that public sector organisations must be prepared to receive and respond to requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FoI).

"Public authorities using Twitter and Facebook to engage with citizens cannot complain when citizens use the same new media to submit freedom of Information requests," said Graham in his YouTube address.

Public authorities are still struggling with new media. Efforts by the left wing Political Scrapbook blog to find out what brand of cat food Larry, the Downing Street cat, ate via Twitter were ignored by Number 10; Scrapbook is making an official complaint under the FoI Act.  

Graham announced a consultation on how the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) could improve the existing approach to publication schemes and appealed for feedback from public authorities and the general public on publication schemes in the light of Web 2.0.

Graham welcomed proposals to delete fingerprint and DNA information, contained in the Protection of Freedoms Bill, but wanted associated information on the Police National Computer to be deleted too. The Commissioner also wanted to see tougher controls on surveillance information.