O’Neill judgment

Back in 2007 Gary Fitzgerald, a junior counsel, sought Cabinet records from the Department of An Taoiseach relating to carbon emissions under the European Environmental Information Regulations. The Department refused release of some records on the basis of constitutional Cabinet confidentiality. The Commissioner for Environmental Information ordered the release of the documents, but An Taoiseach appealed the matter to the High Court. The question in part related to whether the European Directive (which includes a mandatory release element in relation to emissions into the environment) took precedence over our Constitution – and also on how the Directive was transposed into legislation (SI 133/2007). An Taoiseach won the appeal, so the information will not be released. See Irish Times report here.

The full judgment is here:

OCEI vs An Taoiseach