INFORMATION Minister Colin Campbell yesterday announced that Aylair Livingston, an attorney-at-law, will head the newly established Access to Information Unit, commencing next month.

This unit, Campbell told the House of Representatives, will be responsible for monitoring the Access to Information Act which is to come on stream pending its approval by the Senate, which is scheduled to debate the bill tomorrow.

The Access to Information Bill seeks to grant members of the public a right of access to documents produced by public bodies. However, the legislation exempts certain documents from disclosure such as Cabinet records, while excluding others such as some pertaining to the Governor General’s activities as proxy head of state.

According to Campbell, the unit’s main duties will be to “provide guidance to public authorities on all aspects of the Act, and to inform the public of their rights under this progressive legislation.”

The unit’s mandate, he said, was “to assist government ministries and agencies to ensure that all the necessary structures and systems are in place for the successful application of the Act”. The mandate also included the launching of a public education campaign and the production of educational material.

Campbell reported that the director, assisted by a public education manager and two support staff, was actively pursuing all of the start-up activities and establishing links with ministries to meet the initial demand for information, when the new Act comes into effect.

During the holding of public hearings on the Access to Information Bill, members of civil society and the Opposition advocated a delayed implementation of the proposed information law and to have the civil service prepared to effectively operate the new information regime.

In the end the information bill that the House passed provides for the law to come into effect one year after enactment.

“I want to assure this House… that we have in place a structure, system and staff which will ensure that…. in the preparatory year for the Access to Information legislation that we will, indeed, ensure that everything is in place,” said Campbell.

“It’s not just another law to sit on the books and where there is no action,” he added.

On other areas under his portfolio, the information minister, said the Broadcasting Commission would initiate a review of the Broadcasting and Radio Re-Diffusion Act to address the convergence of broadcasting, telecommunications and Internet technologies. The revised Act will also address rules of ownership in the media and standards relating to persons with disabilities.

Campbell added that the commission had engaged the media and film/video production houses regarding the introduction of a children’s programming code.

It has three basic elements namely — rating, making an assessment of programme content; scheduling, deciding what is the best broadcast time; and advisories, informing the viewer or listener in advance and during the broadcast what is expected from the programme.