A CONTROVERSIAL bill exempting MPs and peers from Freedom of Information laws has moved closer to being passed.
Cross-party opponents hoped to talk out the bill but after hours of debate in the House of Commons the bill, introduced by Penrith and the Border MP David Maclean, was supported and will go before the House of Lords.
Critics say the bill, which will get a third reading, is aimed at keeping expenses and allowances secret.
If passed in the Lords, the FOI bill would effectively remove both the House of Commons and House of Lords from the list of public authorities obliged to release information under the 2000 act, which came into force in 2005. The bill also protects all MPs' correspondence from release.
Mr Maclean was unavailable for comment as The Messenger went to press.
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