HOW TO EPICALLY FAIL AT BEING MISSED BY JOURNALISTS LEAVING COURT (PART 3)

We’ve had the man who went for the mask to try and dodge photographers outside court and became a social media sensation after his mask became the story. Then there was the man who thought the best way to blend in with the crowd was to wrap a copy of the newspaper he was likely to

FOI Friday: Tasered animals, council zero hour contracts, overpaid NHS staff and missing library books

Back from a summer break to make even an MP envious, here’s the return of FOI Friday. Thanks to several students on the PA Training course in Newcastle for giving me a nudge by saying they enjoyed it… 1. Tasered animals < Lancashire Evening Post Police officers had to use tasers on animals on 13

FOI FRIDAY: Council lunches, old drug mules, doctor spending and the smoking ban legacy

What’s on the menu for councillors? < < < Sunday Mail SCOTLAND’S biggest council have increased their spending on gourmet dinners – while hiking the price of meals for OAPs and the vulnerable. Glasgow City councillors slashed the subsidies for welfare meals in a bid to save £306,000. The Labour-controlled local authority hiked the cost

FOI Friday: Illegal immigrants, councils using dating sites, suspended staff and the long cost of PFI

How many miles of roadworks in your area? < < < In Cumbria MOTORISTS in Cumbria face around 600 miles of roadworks every year. Figures obtained in a Freedom of Information response showed that, at the end of January, there were 217 miles of roadworks to be completed by the end of this month. The

FOI FRIDAY: Big benefit claims, football ground safety, spending on temps and how much headteachers earn

  1. School-based hate crimes investigated by the police < < < Western Morning News Sure, we’ve seen FOI requests about the number of reports of racism recorded by schools or local authorities – but this is the first time I’ve seen a figure for the number of times police have been called in to investigate

Too many FOI requests? We’ll just cancel Christmas. That’ll teach ’em

Freedom of Information requesters have been getting an increasing amount of stick in recent times. Many authorities simply don’t like the Freedom of Information Act and have never bought into the spirit of the Act, and now that spending cuts are starting to bite, we’re beginning to feel the kick back. Wolverhampton City Council has

FOI Friday: Prisoner complaints, pensions invested in cluster bombs and crime on rich streets

1. The complaints made by prisoners < < < Manchester Evening News Inmates at Strangeways have bombarded jail bosses with thousands of often trivial official complaints in the last 12 months – including grumbles about heating, outstanding DVD orders and the quality of the food. Records of formal inmate grievances at HMP Manchester have shown how

FOI FRIDAY: Benefit claims, burial problems, maternity complaints and noisy neighbourhoods

Taken off the sick We start this week in Liverpool, where the ECHO has taken a closer look at the impact of the crackdown on people claiming incapacity benefits. Under FOI, it was able to establish that 1,000 people in Merseyside who had their benefits taken away from them on the grounds they were fit

FOI Friday: Council bosses and their expenses, dirty hospitals, police spying on neighbours and the problems with paracetamol

1. Hotel Stays I wonder if Andrea Hall, the chief executive of Suffolk County Council, agrees with Tony Blair that FOI was a big mistake. Thanks to FOI, we already know £12,000 was spenting on coaching sessions for her, not to mention the essential spending on posh profile pictures of her. In its latest FOI

FOI Friday: Legal aid for a murderer, teachers unchecked, wheelie bins and … top pothole streets

Legal aid for a man convicted of murder The Belfast Newsletter reports on the outrage caused by revelations that £800,000 was spent on legal aid for a man convicted of murder – a figure which is expected to rise now the man concerned is expected to appeal. In the classroom without a CRB check The