The Ministry of Health has been swamped with Public Access to Information requests, the health minister has said.

Kim Wilson added the volume of inquiries had used up “a tremendous amount of staff time”. She said: “The impact of Pati has been significant and highly detrimental,”

Ms Wilson was speaking during the Budget debate in the House of Assembly on Wednesday.

She said she supported “the spirit of Pati”, but that it had been implemented “without providing any resources whatsoever”.

Ministry staff have dealt with 24 Pati requests so far this year, plus 11 reviews.

Ms Wilson said a single request could use up between ten to 40 hours of work time.

She added the extra burden had led to delays in other work, like the establishment of an Office of the Public Guardian.