Chief Ombudsman Beverley Wakem is praising a Dunedin City Council initiative to put official information requests online.
The council has begun a new policy of publishing on its website all responses and documents it releases under the Local Government Official Information Act that are in the public interest.
The council is the first in the country to make the process public, as part of a wider transparency drive.
Ms Wakem says she is delighted with Dunedin's move.
"I think this council is leading the way and should be thoroughly applauded for what it's doing," she says. "The whole impetus of the act is about making information available to assist people to make informed decisions...and this goes a long way towards doing that."
Ms Wakem says she will be pushing other councils to follow Dunedin's lead.
