Ways of making you talk : Germany’s judicial determinations that the executive must answer parliamentary questions properly

Abstract

Information is the lifeblood of government and it is also the lifeblood of governmental accountability. In Australia, insufficient enforcement mechanisms mean that the executive often gets away with not providing information to Parliament which it is legally obliged to provide and has thus impoverished public debate and thwarted accountability. In Germany, the Federal Constitutional Court has stepped into the breach and given itself the power to determine when refusal of information by the executive is justified. Case law has developed on the topic, the system has been generally accepted and it has enhanced accountability. However, there is one major drawback: the practical one of delay in procuring a decision of the Court.