A heavily redacted review of school meals has drawn sharp criticism in Keys, with MHKs accusing the Education Department of undermining transparency.
The report was published with extensive blacked-out sections, leaving politicians and the public unable to assess its findings.
On Tuesday Manx Labour Party leader Joney Faragher questioning why the review, intended to inform policy on ultra-processed foods, local produce, and food waste, was released in such an opaque form.
“The report has been rendered completely meaningless by the redactions,” she said. “Nobody can get any information out of it.”
Education Minister Daphne Caine defended the redactions, stating they were applied under the Freedom of Information Act to protect policy formulation, commercial interests, and personal data.
“The public interest test was carried out,” she said, adding that the document was originally an internal “operational” review.
Not an FOI?
Lawrie Hooper (Lib Vannin, Ramsey) rejected the justification, noting the report was not an FoI response and accused Mrs Caine of choosing excessive secrecy.
He highlighted absurd examples, such as a redacted sentence about school snacks, and proposed sharing the full report with Tynwald’s Social Affairs Policy Review Committee.
“These redactions are a nonsense,” he said.
Julie Edge (Onchan) further pressed Mrs Caine to release the unredacted report to Tynwald, asking, “How is [the public] supposed to engage with policy when all they see is pages of blacked-out text?”
Jason Moorhouse (Arbory, Castletown, and Malew) even suggested making the report available in a Tynwald reading room, but Mrs Caine declined, calling it a “working document.”
Legal
Mrs Caine reiterated that the redactions followed legal advice and emphasised her focus on “action” to improve school meals.
“The politics of which bits should be published isn’t helpful,” she said, pointing to ongoing efforts to reduce processed foods and survey parents.
Chris Thomas (Douglas Central) sought reassurance that officers were not blamed for the report’s scope, which Mrs Caine confirmed.
However, the backbenches remained unsatisfied with Ms Faragher demanding a review of redaction policies, asking, “Why can’t the public see information feeding into policy decisions?”
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