Still time to write to your MP about information sharing

Spy Blog points out that there is still time to write to your MP about the creepy authoritarian ideas in the Coroners & Justice Bill.

My toady MP, Gordon Banks, hasn't bothered replying to my email (nor indeed to the earlier one about MPs' expenses). It doesn't matter though. He probably knows he's toast at the next election. The point still needs to be got across.

Comments

[Rupert Wyndham]

This may be of interest.

Mr R. Wyndham
By email to rupertwyndham@googlemail.com
January 27th, 2009
Dear Mr Wyndham
RFI20081397 - Freedom of Information request
Thank you for your letter of December 3rd requesting information under the Freedom of
Information Act about what support, especially financial but also otherwise, the BBC give to “The
Cambridge Environment & Media Programme”. The reference number for your request is
RFI20081397.
Please note that your request is outside the scope of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the
Act”) but we are happy to provide you with information about these seminars and the role of the
Cambridge Environment and Media Programme.
Over the past twelve years groups of BBC managers and editors have met other broadcasters and
specialist contributors, mainly in Cambridge, in order to participate in an on-going series known as
the “Real World” seminars. They are designed to stimulate creative thinking amongst broadcasters
and experts about world issues and how they are covered in the media, and support the BBC’s
Charter commitment to bring “the UK to the world and the world to the UK”.
Diverse discussion topics under the broad heading of “making sense of an interconnected world”
have included: ageing, food, risk, future superpowers, technology, climate change, business
investment, biodiversity, entrepreneurialism, public health, population, migration, investment flows
and innovation.
Participation is diverse in terms of opinions and background. In order to facilitate frank discussions
the meetings are run according to the Chatham House Rule so that individuals’ comments cannot
be reproduced in such a way as to allow attribution. The idea is to create the setting for
interesting and wide ranging conversations.
Recent seminars have included experts from multi-national business and SMEs; think-tanks such as
the Institute for Economic Affairs and Overseas Development Institute; academics and researchers
from many universities and specialisms (science, technology, economic and social sciences, and
history); and policy experts on and field workers from the developing world.
The seminars are organised by a partnership comprising the BBC, the International Broadcasting
Trust and Dr Joe Smith, a senior geography lecturer at the Open University. (You may be
interested in the references to the seminars in the IBT’s most recent report, “The Great Global
Switch-Off”, which is attached.)
The first of the series of seminars was devised by Dr Smith during his time as Director of
Programmes for the University of Cambridge Committee for Interdisciplinary Environmental
Studies (CIES), in conjunction with Roger Harrabin, then a Today programme reporter on
sabbatical at Wolfson College, Cambridge.
Roger’s sabbatical research investigated the challenges for news journalists of reporting on longterm,
slow-moving systemic trends like environmental change. Roger and Dr Smith were asked by
the then head of BBC News, Tony Hall, to engage senior managers and editors in discussion on
how to improve broadcast debate of long-term issues which do not always offer ready news
"pegs", such as environmental change, development and societal risk in areas like health and
transport.
The early seminars were run under the aegis of the CIES but when the Committee closed Dr
Smith continued his work on the seminars with Roger under the organisational tag, the
“Cambridge Media and Environment Programme”. Roger and Dr Smith co-directed the early
seminars. Roger undertook this entirely as part of his BBC work. He has been made an honorary
Associate Press Fellow at Wolfson College, Cambridge, in recognition of his work.
The only purpose of the CMEP is to research and plan these seminars. The CMEP is an informal
partnership. Roger Harrabin, who is now BBC Environment Analyst, is paid for by the BBC and
receives no other remuneration and Dr Smith’s time in planning these seminars is funded
separately and arranged by him from a variety of donors offering small sums. The BBC News and
Vision divisions help to plan the seminars, ensure they fulfil BBC requirements and pay for the
costs of facilitating them, e.g. hiring of the venue. This partnership has been approved by the BBC’s
Controller of Editorial Policy.
The BBC is now an acknowledged global leader in bringing complex environmental news and
debates to a world audience. The remit of the seminars broadened when the International
Broadcasting Trust, joined the partnership in 2004. The current remit of the seminars is to
illuminate the challenges and opportunities facing an increasingly inter-connected world.
We hope you find this helpful. I am sorry for the delay in replying to you but I wanted to give as
full a picture as I could and needed to consult Roger Harrabin in order to do so. As has been
explained to you, this was not possible until now.
Your requests are outside the scope of the Act because the BBC and the other public service
broadcasters are covered by the Act only in respect of information held for purposes “other than
those of journalism, art or literature” (see Schedule I, Part VI of the Act). However, on this
occasion we’re happy to respond to your request. For more information about how the Act
applies to the BBC please see www.bbc.co.uk/foi Please note that this guidance is not intended to
be a comprehensive legal interpretation of how the Act applies to the BBC.
The BBC does not offer an internal review when the information requested is not covered by the
Act. If you disagree with our decision you can appeal to the Information Commissioner. Contact
details are: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire,
SK9 5AF telephone 01625 545 700. http://www.ico.gov.uk/
Yours sincerely
Stephanie Harris
Head of Editorial Compliance
BBC News

Rgds

RW

[Bishop Hill]

Rupert.

This is on the wrong thread, I think. I've replied by email.