The Isle of Man Government is looking at ways to manage the growing demand for Freedom of Information (FoI) requests.

These measures could include introducing charges and setting time limits on requests.

The Council of Ministers has launched a public consultation seeking views on these proposed measures as they try to ease the burden in the current system.

FoI requests allow individuals to ask public authorities for access to information held by them, free of charge, promoting transparency and accountability.

But the government insists some requests can require significant resources to process and is concerned a small number of people are making a large number of requests.

It says the consultation is intended to seek views on these proposals which aim to strike a balance between the right to access information, cost-effective administration and value for taxpayers.

Minister for the Cabinet Office, David Ashford, said: ‘Council recognises and supports the right of all Isle of Man residents to request information from public authorities, which is why we want people from all across the island to share their views.

‘We want to ensure any future changes align with the spirit of the Freedom of Information Act. Any changes must strike a balance between people’s right to access information, cost-effective administration and value for taxpayers.’

Since 2018, the number of FoI requests received by the Isle of Man Government has increased by around 17% year on year, which the government says is putting increasing demands on departments boards and offices.

In 2024, a total of 982 requests were received by Isle of Man Government. Notably, the majority came from a small group of individuals, with 7% of requesters responsible for nearly half of the requests.

In total, officers spent 5,300 hours working on responses - nearly 700 workdays - at a cost of £180,000.

The government says that while the number of requests dropped last year, there has been ain increase in the ones taking longer to complete.

Last year the overall number of FoI requests decreased, with a drop in requests that took less than an hour to complete. However, those that took between 1-18 hours have increased, particularly those that took more than 18 hours to process.

More than half of the total requests were resolved in seven hours or less at a cost of £66,000. Nearly 50 cases (5%) took longer than 18 hours and cost £43,000. Almost 20% (197) took between seven and 18 hours to process while 18% (172) were managed in less than an hour.

The government is also seeking feedback on what constitutes a reasonable fee and discretion to waive or reduce fees. There will also be consideration over what would be a reasonable number of requests an individual can make in a calendar year. The results will be used to inform future policy options for the Council of Ministers to consider.

The consultation can be completed online at consult.gov.im and closes on May 9.