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Our Ref: LEX 3702
16 June 2025
Briddy Mac (Right To Know)
Emai
l: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Ms Mac
Freedom of Information request
I refer to your request dated 26 February 2025 made under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the
Act).
Attached at Annexure A to this letter is my decision and statement of reasons for that decision.
I have decided to publish the document in full in respect of your request. Publication of the
documents will be made on the AFP website a
t https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/information-
publication-scheme/routinely-requested-information-and-disclosure-log in accordance with
timeframes stipulated in section 11C of the Act.
I sincerely apologise for the delay in providing you this decision.
Regards,
Lauren Bird
Deputy General Counsel
Freedom of Information, Commercial and Governance
Chief Counsel Portfolio
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Freedom of Information
/ GPO Box 401 Canberra City ACT 2601
/ Email: xxx@xxx.xxx.xx
POLICING FOR A SAFER AUSTRALIA
ABN 17 864 931 143
afp.gov.au
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ANNEXURE A
STATEMENT OF REASONS RELATING TO AN FOI REQUEST BY
BRIDDY MAC (RIGHT TO KNOW)
I, Lauren Bird, Deputy General Counsel, Freedom of Information, Commercial and Governance, am an
officer authorised under section 23 of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Act) to make decisions in
relation to the Australian Federal Police (AFP). What follows is my decision and reasons for the
decision in relation to your request.
A. BACKGROUND
1. On 26 February 2025, the AFP received your request in the following terms:
“Documents regarding staff numbers for joint anti child exploitation teams and child protection
teams by command for 2023 and 2024.”
2. On 28 March 2025, the statutory time period in which to notify you of a decision expired, and your
request was therefore deemed refused by the agency under section 15AC(3) of the Act. However,
the agency has an obligation to continue to process your request and provide you with a revised
decision.
3. I apologise for the delays experienced in providing you with this revised decision.
B. SEARCHES
4. Searches for documents were undertaken by Professional Standards as the relevant business
area with responsibility for holding information relating to your request.
C. EVIDENCE/MATERIAL ON WHICH MY FINDINGS WERE BASED
5. In reaching my decision, I have relied on the following:
(a) the scope of your request;
(b) the contents of the document identified as relevant to the request;
(c) advice from AFP officers with responsibility for matters contained in the documents;
(d) the Act; and
(e) the guidelines issued by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner under section
93A of the Act.
D. DECISION
6. In regard to the scope of your request, I have taken into account section 2.42 of Part 2 of the
Information Commissioner's Guidelines issued under 93A of the Act.
Section 2.42 states:
The right of access under the FOI Act is to existing documents, rather than
to information. The FOI Act does not require an agency to create a new document in response
to a request for access, except in limited circumstances where the applicant seeks access in a
different format or where the information is stored in an agency computer system rather than in
discrete form.
7. Section 17 of the Act relevantly provides:
(a) where it appears from the request that the desire of the applicant is for information that is not
available in discrete form in written documents of the agency; and
(b) the agency could produce a written document containing the information in discrete form by:
i.
the use of a computer or other equipment that is ordinarily available to the agency for
retrieving or collating stored information; …
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the agency shall deal with the request as if it were a request for access to a written
document so produced and containing that information and, for that purpose, this Act
applies as if the agency had such a document in its possession.
8. I have decided to release one (1) document to you that was produced in relation to your request
under section 17 of the Act in full.
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***YOU SHOULD READ THIS GENERAL ADVICE IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE LEGISLATIVE
REQUIREMENTS IN THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 1982 (Cth)***
If you are dissatisfied with a Freedom of Information decision made by the AFP, you can apply for a
review of the decision by the Information Commissioner (IC).
As this decision has been made outside the
statutory time period, the option of internal review by the AFP is not available as per Section 54E of the
FOI Act. For complaints about the AFP’s actions in processing your request, you do not need to seek review by the
IC in making your complaint.
REVIEW RIGHTS under Part VII of the Act Review by the Information Commissioner Section 54L of the FOI Act gives you the right to apply directly to the IC for review of this decision. In
making your application you wil need to provide an address for notices to be sent (this can be an email
address) and a copy of the AFP decision.
Section 54S of the FOI Act provides the timeframes for an IC review submission. For an
access refusal
decision covered by section 54L(2), the application must be made within 60 days. For an
access grant
decision covered by section 54M(2), the application must be made within 30 days.
Applications for IC review may be lodged by email
(xxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx), using the OAIC’s online
application form (available a
t www.oaic.gov.au) or addressed to:
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
GPO Box 5128
Sydney NSW 2001
The IC encourages parties to an IC review to resolve their dispute informal y, and to consider possible
compromises or alternative solutions to the dispute in this matter. The AFP would be pleased to assist
you in this regard.
Complaint If you are unhappy with the way we have handled your FOI request, please let us know what we could
have done better. We may be able to rectify the problem. If you are not satisfied with our response, you
can make a complaint to the IC. A complaint may be lodged using the same methods identified above. It
would assist if you set out the action you consider should be investigation and your reasons or grounds.
More information about IC reviews and complaints is available on the OAIC’s website at
https://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-information/reviews-and-complaints/.
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