Freedom of information as a constitutive ingredient of freedom of expression : the case of Malta within the European context

Abstract

Within the European context, freedom of information is given both a wide and a narrow significance. In so far as the European Convention of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is concerned, this terminology does not include the right to seek and obtain government held information. To this extent Maltese law complies with this narrow definition of freedom of information. However, both the Council of Europe and the European Union have adopted a wider interpretation of freedom of information which empowers the citizen to have access, within certain prescribed parameters, to government held information. This article analyses the extent to which Malta has embarked upon the adoption of a wider interpretation of the term.