The growing practice of censoring government documents—or redaction—is the subject of Nicholas Dobson’s article in this week’s NLJ
He covers the February Court of Appeal case, R (IAB & Others), in which the court considered the redaction of all junior civil servants’ names from evidence.
Dobson writes: ‘Bean LJ remarked the appellants’ submissions seemed “extraordinarily far-reaching” as “junior civil servants comprise some 98% of the civil service as a whole”. This is likely to result in disclosed documents covered in black spaces.’
Giving judgment, Bean LJ stated: ‘The practice is inimical to open government and unsupported by authority.’
Dobson looks at a range of case law and judicial comment on the issue, and questions whether the routine redaction of documents can be justified.
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