20 July 2023
Fairooz
BY EMAIL: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 23/05/01395
File Number:
FA 2305/01395
Dear Fairooz
Freedom of Information (FOI) request – Access Decision
On 22 May 2023, the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) received a request for access
to document under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a decision on your request for access under the
FOI Act.
1
Scope of request
You have requested access to the following document:
I would like to have the details of the most recent brief given by the Australian
government to the Sri Lankan advertising agency that works on the “Zero Chance”
campaign. Ideally, the Australian government would make available this brief in full,
as well as the date on which it was sent to the advertising agency.
2
Authority to make decision
I am an officer authorised under section 23 of the FOI Act to make decisions in respect of
requests to access document or to amend or annotate records.
3
Relevant material
In reaching my decision I referred to the following:
• the terms of your request
• the document relevant to the request
• the FOI Act
• Guidelines published by the Office of the Information Commissioner under section 93A
of the FOI Act (the FOI Guidelines)
• advice from Departmental officers with responsibility for matters relating to the
document to which you sought access
9 Wentworth Street Parramatta NSW 2150
PO Box 25 Belconnen ACT 2616 • Email:xxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx • www.homeaffairs.gov.au
4
Document in scope of request
The Department has identified one document as falling within the scope of your request. This
document was in the possession of the Department on 22 May 2023 when your request was
received.
5
Decision
The decision in relation to the document in the possession of the Department which fall within
the scope of your request is as follows:
• Release one document in part with deletions
6
Reasons for Decision
Detailed reasons for my decision are set out below.
My findings of fact and reasons for deciding that the exemption provision applies to that
information are set out below.
6.1 Section 22 of the FOI Act – irrelevant to request
Section 22 of the FOI Act provides that if giving access to a document would disclose information
that would reasonably be regarded as irrelevant to the request, it is possible for the Department
to prepare an edited copy of the document, modified by deletions, ensuring that the edited copy
would not disclose any information that would reasonably be regarded as irrelevant to the
request.
On 29 May 2023, the Department advised you that its policy is to exclude the personal details of
officers not in the Senior Executive Service (SES), as well as the mobile and work telephone
numbers of SES staff, contained in documents that fall within scope of an FOI request.
Parts of the document contain information which consists of footers which have automatically
been added to those documents when they were printed from the Department’s system. That
information provides an online address for the Department’s computer systems and does not
form part of your file and records held by the Department about you. I consider this information
to be irrelevant to your FOI request.
I have decided that part of document marked ‘s22(1)(a)(i )’ would disclose information that could
reasonably be regarded as irrelevant to your request. I have prepared an edited copy of the
document, with the irrelevant material deleted pursuant to section 22(1)(a)(i ) of the FOI Act.
The remainder of the document has been considered for release to you as it is relevant to your
request.
6.2 Section 47 of the FOI Act – Documents disclosing commercially valuable
information
Section 47 provides that a document is an exempt document if its disclosure under this Act would
disclose any information having a commercial value that would be, or could reasonably be
expected to be, destroyed or diminished if the information were disclosed.
In determining whether the information within the documents is commercially valuable, I have
had regard to the following factors:
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• whether the information is known only to the person for whom it has value or, if it
is known to others, to what extent that detracts from its intrinsic commercial value
• whether the information confers a competitive advantage on the person to whom
it relates – for example, if it lowers the cost of production or allows access to
markets not available to competitors
• whether a genuine "arm's-length" buyer would be prepared to pay to obtain that
information
• whether the information is stil current or out of date (noting that out of date
information may no longer have any value)
• whether disclosing the information would reduce the value of a business operation
or commercial activity, reflected perhaps in a lower share price.
I consider that document contain information of a commercial value and that there is a reasonable
likelihood that value would be, or could reasonably be expected to be, destroyed or diminished if
the information were disclosed.
The information contained within the document is valuable for the purpose of carrying on the
commercial activities in which the entity is engaged. The information is relevant to the profitability
or viability of a continuing business operation. If the information were to be released, it could
enable a competitor to obtain a commercial advantage over the entity.
I have therefore decided that part of the document is exempt from disclosure under section 47 of
the FOI Act.
6.3 Section 47E of the FOI Act – Operations of Agencies
Section 47E(d) of the FOI Act provides that documents are conditionally exempt if disclosure
would, or could reasonably be expected to, have a substantial adverse effect on the proper and
efficient conduct of the operations of an agency.
I consider that the disclosure of the parts of documents marked ‘
s47E(d)’ would, or could
reasonably be expected to, have a substantial adverse effect on the proper and efficient conduct
of the operations of the Department.
Any disclosure resulting in the prejudice of the effectiveness of the Department’s operational
methods and procedures would result in the need for this Department, and potentially its law
enforcement partners, to change those methods and/or procedures to avoid jeopardising their
future effectiveness.
Some information marked 's47E(d)' consists of operational email addresses used by this
Department. These email addresses are not otherwise publicly available, and disclosure of this
information could reasonably be expected to result in potential vexatious communication and
public inquiries which these operational areas are not resourced to manage. The Department
has established channels of communication for members of the public into the Department, and
I consider there is no public interest in disclosing these operational contact details. Given the
operational focus of those business areas, such a diversion of the resources of that business
area could reasonably be expected to have a substantial adverse effect on the proper and
efficient conduct of the operations of this Department and its partner agencies.
I have decided that parts of the documents are conditionally exempt under section 47E(d) of the
FOI Act. Access to a conditionally exempt document must general y be given unless it would be
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contrary to the public interest to do so. I have turned my mind to whether disclosure of the
information would be contrary to the public interest, and have included my reasoning in that
regard at paragraph 6.5 below.
6.4 Section 47F of the FOI Act – Personal Privacy
Section 47F of the FOI Act provides that a document is conditionally exempt if its disclosure
under the FOI Act would involve the unreasonable disclosure of personal information of any
person. ‘Personal information’ means information or an opinion about an identified individual, or
an individual who is reasonably identifiable, whether the information or opinion is true or not, and
whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not (see section 4 of the FOI
Act and section 6 of the
Privacy Act 1988).
I consider that disclosure of the information marked 's47F' in the document would disclose
personal information relating to third parties. The information within the document would
reasonably identify a person, either through names, positions or descriptions of their role or
employment circumstance.
The FOI Act states that, when deciding whether the disclosure of the personal information would
be ‘unreasonable’, I must have regard to the following four factors set out in s.47F(2) of the
FOI Act:
•
the extent to which the information is well known;
•
whether the person to whom the information relates is known to be (or to have
been) associated with the matters dealt with in the document;
•
the availability of the information from publicly available resources;
•
any other matters that I consider relevant.
I have considered each of these factors below.
The information relating to the third parties is not well known and would only be known to a limited
group of people with a business need to know. As this information is only known to a limited
group of people, the individual(s) concerned is/are not generally known to be associated with the
matters discussed in the document. This information is not available from publicly accessible
sources.
I do not consider that the information relating specifical y to the third parties would be relevant to
the broader scope of your request, as you are seeking access to briefing from Australian
government to Sri Lankan advertising agency that works on ‘zero chance’ campaign rather than
information which wholly relates to other individuals.
I am satisfied that the disclosure of the information within the document would involve an
unreasonable disclosure of personal information about a number of individuals.
I have decided that the information referred to above is conditionally exempt under section 47F
of the FOI Act. Access to a conditionally exempt document must generally be given unless it
would be contrary to the public interest to do so. I have turned my mind to whether disclosure of
the information would be contrary to the public interest, and have included my reasoning in that
regard at paragraph 6.5 below.
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6.5 The public interest – section 11A of the FOI Act
As I have decided that parts of the document are conditionally exempt, I am now required
to consider whether access to the conditionally exempt information would be contrary to
the public interest (section 11A of the FOI Act).
A part of a document which is conditionally exempt must also meet the public interest test
in section 11A(5) before an exemption may be claimed in respect of that part.
In summary, the test is whether access to the conditionally exempt part of the document
would be, on balance, contrary to the public interest.
In applying this test, I have noted the objects of the FOI Act and the importance of the other
factors listed in section 11B(3) of the FOI Act, being whether access to the document would
do any of the following:
(a) promote the objects of this Act (including all the matters set out in sections 3
and 3A)
(b) inform debate on a matter of public importance
(c) promote effective oversight of public expenditure
(d) allow a person to access his or her own personal information.
Having regard to the above I am satisfied that:
•
Access to the document would promote the objects of the FOI Act.
•
The subject matter of the document does not seem to have a general characteristic
of public importance. The matter has a limited scope and, in my view, would be of
interest to a very narrow section of the public.
•
No insights into public expenditure wil be provided through examination of the
document.
•
You do not require access to the document in order to access your own personal
information.
I have also considered the following factors that weigh against the release of the conditionally
exempt information in the document:
•
Disclosure of the operational email addresses which are conditionally exempt under
section 47E(d) of the FOI Act would have a substantial adverse effect on the ability
of the relevant operational areas to conduct their business as usual. The Department
has established avenues in place for members of the public to contact when they
have queries, complaints or comments. I consider that there is a strong public interest
in ensuring public feedback is filtered through these available channels so that
operational areas within the Department are able to carry out their functions in an
effective matter. I consider that this would be contrary to the public interest and that
this factor weighs strongly against disclosure of the exempt information.
•
Disclosure of the personal information which is conditionally exempt under
section
47F of the FOI Act could reasonably be expected to prejudice the protection of those
individuals' right to privacy.
•
The Department is committed to complying with its obligations under the
Privacy Act
1988, which sets out standards and obligations that regulate how the Department
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must handle and manage personal information. It is firmly in the public interest that
the Department uphold the rights of individuals to their own privacy and meets its
obligations under the Privacy Act. I consider that non-compliance with the
Department’s statutory obligations concerning the protection of personal information
would be contrary to the public interest and that this factor weighs strongly against
disclosure.
I have also had regard to section 11B(4) which sets out the factors which are irrelevant to my
decision, which are:
a)
access to the document could result in embarrassment to the Commonwealth
Government, or cause a loss of confidence in the Commonwealth Government
b)
access to the document could result in any person misinterpreting or
misunderstanding the document
c)
the author of the document was (or is) of high seniority in the agency to which
the request for access to the document was made
d)
access to the document could result in confusion or unnecessary debate.
I have not taken into account any of those factors in this decision.
Upon balancing all of the above relevant public interest considerations, I have concluded that the
disclosure of the conditionally exempt information in the documents would be contrary to the
public interest and it is therefore exempt from disclosure under the FOI Act.
7
Legislation
A copy of the FOI Act is available at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Series/C2004A02562. If you
are unable to access the legislation through this website, please contact our office for a copy.
8
Your Review Rights
Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
You may apply directly to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) for a
review of this decision. You must apply in writing within 60 days of this notice. For further
information about review rights and how to submit a request for a review to the OAIC, please see
https://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-information/reviews-and-complaints/information-
commissioner-review/.
9
Making a Complaint
You may complain to the Australian Information Commissioner about action taken by the
Department in relation to your request.
Your enquiries to the Australian Information Commissioner can be directed to:
Phone 1300 363 992 (local call charge)
Email xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
There is no particular form required to make a complaint to the Australian Information
Commissioner. The request should be in writing and should set out the grounds on which it is
considered that the action taken in relation to the request should be investigated and identify the
Department of Home Affairs as the relevant agency.
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10 Contacting the FOI Section
Should you wish to discuss this decision, please do not hesitate to contact the FOI Section at
xxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
[Electronically signed]
Ky
Position number: 60043042
Authorised Decision Maker
Department of Home Affairs
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