Cap. 496 Art. 29Documents affecting national security,defenceor international relations, and Cabinet documents.

(1) A document is an exempt document if its disclosure under this Act:

(a) would, or could reasonably be expected to, cause damage to the security, the defence, or the international relations of Malta; or

(b) would divulge any information or matter communicated in confidence by or on behalf of a foreign government, an authority of a foreign government, or an international organisation to the Government of Malta or to another public authority, or by the Government of Malta or another public authority to a foreign government, an authority thereof, or an international organisation.

(2) Subject to subarticle (3), a document is an exempt document if it is:

(a) a document that has been submitted to the Cabinet for its consideration or is proposed by a Minister to be so submitted, being a document that was brought into an extract from, a document referred to in paragraph

(a) or (b); or

(d) a document the disclosure of which would involve the disclosure of any deliberation or decision of the Cabinet, other than a document by which a decision of the Cabinet was published:

Provided that each year, the Prime Minister may direct that certain Cabinet documents, being documents selected from among those that are thirty years old or more, shall be subject to disclosure, whereupon this subarticle shall not apply to such documents.

(3) Subarticle (2) shall not apply to a document if, and in so far as, it contains factual information relating to a decision of the Cabinet that has been published.

(4) In subarticles (2) and (3) "Cabinet" includes Cabinet Committees.