Legislation
Legislation specific to PRONI
The Public Records Act (NI), 1923
The Public Records Act (NI) 1923 (80KB)
established PRONI as the place of deposit for public records, created the roles of Keeper and Deputy Keeper of the records as well as defining what public records actually are. It also permitted PRONI to accept records from private sources.Disposal of Documents Order, 1925
A further piece of legislation, the 1925 Disposal of Documents Order (80KB) was then passed. This sets out how PRONI and government departments should deal with the disposal of public records once their business need comes to an end.General Legislation which affects PRONI
In addition to the legislation specific to PRONI, there are several other pieces of legislation that PRONI, as a public body, has to adhere to:The Lord Chancellor’s Code of Practice, 2000
The Lord Chancellor’s Code of Practice under section 46 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (56KB) sets out what the Lord Chancellor requires from public authorities as they carry out their duties in relation to the Freedom of Information Act.The aims of the code are twofold;
- the first aim is to provide a suitable set of practices in relation to the creation, management and disposal of public records;
- the second deals with the arrangements for reviewing and transferring the records to a place of deposit once their administrative use has come to an end.
The Freedom of Information Act, 2000
The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 came into force on 1st January 2005. The Act gives members of the public the legal right to access information held by a public authority.The Data Protection Act, 1998
The Data Protection Act 1998 gives anyone the right to know what information is held about them by a public authority and sets out rules to ensure that information is handled properly.Environmental Information Regulations, 2004
The Environmental Information Regulations 2004 give rights of access to environmental information under terms similar to Freedom of Information.
