Imperfect Information: Experiences and Perceptions of the use of Freedom of Information in the Scottish voluntary sector

First paragraph: The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 came into effect on 1st January 2005, the same date as the wider UK legislation (Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA)) also came into force. The introduction of FOI1 in Scotland, and across the UK, is part of a wider global trend. In 1990 there were only a dozen FOI laws in operation, by 2011 this figure had risen to 85, and there are many more FOI laws currently progressing through legislatures around the world.2 While the spread of FOI throughout the world is very evident, the efficacy of these laws and their successes in opening up government and promoting accountability and participation is less well understood