The amount of Public Access to Information requests has put a “significant burden” on government authorities, the Cabinet Office has said.

A ministry spokeswoman said the number of requests also diverted some resources away from essential services and, depending on the effort and time required to respond to certain queries, “risks the efficiency and effectiveness of public service delivery”.

The comments came after Crystal Caesar, the Minister of the Cabinet Office, introduced the Public Access to Information Amendment Bill in the House of Assembly this month.

The Bill proposed charging fees for Pati requests that take longer than 16 hours for authorities to process.

Gitanjali Gutierrez, the Information Commissioner, said the proposed fees, which were not specified in the amendment, would “restrict the public’s right to information” and that the amendment “lacks important and well-established safeguards found in other jurisdictions that apply similar limits”.

Ms Gutierrez added: “I am not opposed, in principle, to the implementation of time limits and a fee structure for the processing of Pati requests, which are commonly found in other jurisdictions.

“I am opposed, however, to the Government’s introduction of selective, piecemeal amendments.

“The resulting amendments tabled fall short of the comprehensive and well-established legislative frameworks found in other jurisdictions that strike an effective balance between managing the burdens on public authorities with the public’s fundamental right to access public information”.

The government spokeswoman acknowledged Ms Gutierrez’s concerns as well as the importance of Pati, which she said shapes “part of a robust ‘information rights’ framework that helps create accountability”.

She explained: “We are committed to finding solutions that uphold the principles of transparency while addressing the practical challenges faced by public authorities.

“Our goal is to ensure that public access to information remains robust, without compromising the ability of public authorities to perform their vital functions.

“There are other aspects that the legislation proposes, and these will all be discussed and debated when the House resumes next Friday.”

The spokeswoman also mentioned how people can request some information from public authorities without using Pati.

She said: “Many public authorities have processes in place to respond to general queries and requests from the public and these remain as options for the public to request information and understand the operations of public authorities.”