Good records and information management will underpin Freedom of Information. Parliament recognised this by providing for a Code of Practice on the Management of Records under section 46 of the Freedom of Information Act. The vast majority of government records are now produced electronically and The National Archives works with central and local government organisations to ensure that this information is both stored securely and easily accessible and has produced Model Action Plans for developing records management that conforms to the Code of Practice under section 46.
Increasingly, government records take the form of emails. It is the responsibility of all members of staff to manage their email messages appropriately. This means staff must identify email messages that are records of their business activities and those that are not. It is important that email messages that form part of the official record are saved for as long as business needs require and are moved from email accounts and personal folders and stored corporately in accordance with departmental record management procedures. Email messages that do not form part of the official record should be managed within the mailbox in the short term but permanently deleted when no longer required.
The National Archives is the central advisory body on the care of records and archives in all media from creation to long term preservation. They are able to provide expert advice on all aspects of records management and electronic records management and also provide a range of standards and guidance on all aspects of records management