15 documents related to proposed HOSM Iraq amendment

Trav S made this Freedom of Information request to Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

This request has been closed to new correspondence from the public body. Contact us if you think it ought be re-opened.

The request was refused by Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Dear FOI,

We ask you refer to FOI/2019/209. Mr Rush identified 15 documents containing information regarding a proposed amendment to extend HOSM eligibly to personnel engaged by AusAID in support of humanitarian operations in Iraq.

We ask the department provide administrative access providing information or documents related to the 15 documents. Can we ask for a document cataloguing each of the 15 documents and recording the following information for each document:

Coloumn 1 - a reference number (with which to refer to the document)
Coloumn 2 - the date the document was created.
Coloumn 3 - the agency creating the document
Coloumn 4 - the FOI exemption relied upon to withhold the document from the public
Coloumn 5 - the document’s title, subject or other identifying information.

Thank you for your time.

Trav S

FOI, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

8 Attachments

OFFICIAL

PM&C Reference: FOI/2021/123

 

Dear Trav S

 

Thank you for your email.

 

Could you please confirm whether you are making a request under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), or if your request is an
administrative access request?

 

Yours sincerely

 

FOI Adviser

FOI and Privacy Section| Legal Policy Branch

Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

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Dear FOI,
Thank you for your email. I will be happy to take your advice.
I was recently advised administrative access arrangements may be the more suitable for some enquiries. I do not want to waste the department's time and would be grateful for advice on which mechanism is more likely to result in the requested document being provided.
Thank you for your time.
Yours faithfully
Trav S

Dear FOI,
Thank you for your email.
Unfortunately the schedule of documents produced following the internal review of FOI/2019/209 does not provide most of the information we requested. We asked for a document cataloguing each of the 15 documents and recording the following information for each document:
Coloumn 1 - a reference number (with which to refer to the document)
Coloumn 2 - the date the document was created.
Coloumn 3 - the agency creating the document
Coloumn 4 - the FOI exemption relied upon to withhold the document from the public
Coloumn 5 - the document’s title, subject or other identifying information.
Please confirm that the department is unwilling to provide the information requested via the administrative access mechanism.
Thank you for your time.
Yours sincerely,
Trav S

FOI, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

8 Attachments

OFFICIAL

PM&C Ref: FOI/2021/123

 

Dear Trav S

 

Thank you for your email.

 

The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (the Department) has
provided, by way of administrative access, an email response to your
request addressing each of the 5 parts of your request with information
readily available within the Department.

 

As advised in our response, a specific document addressing the terms of
your request does not exist as at the date of your request. Therefore, the
Department deemed it most appropriate to provide you with information
under administrative access arrangements.

 

Yours sincerely

 

FOI Adviser

FOI and Privacy Section| Legal Policy Branch

Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

[1]http://www.dcducks.com/wp-content/themes...
6271 5849 |
[2]http://cdn.mysitemyway.com/icons-waterma... request email]
|
[4]https://www.musicianswithoutborders.org/...

One National Circuit Barton ACT 2600 | PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600

[6]cid:image001.jpg@01D30607.6CF4DA00[7]cid:image002.jpg@01D30607.6CF4DA00[8]cid:image003.jpg@01D30607.6CF4DA00 [9]cid:image004.jpg@01D30607.6CF4DA00

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Dear FOI,

Thank you for your email.

Unfortunately the information the department provided does not address our request for information. We understand the department advises they do not have a document with the information we requested. Relevantly, the information we requested is readily available on each of the 15 documents. It would be short and easy work to collate that information into a new document.

To confirm we would be grateful if the department can produce a document with the following information extracted from each of the 15 documents:
Coloumn 1 - a reference number
Coloumn 2 - the date the document was created.
Coloumn 3 - the agency creating the document
Coloumn 4 - the FOI exemption relied upon to withhold the document from the public
Coloumn 5 - the document’s title, subject or other identifying information.

We will be very grateful if the department can produce such a document. Please let me know if they are unwilling to do so.

Yours sincerely,

Trav S

Dear FOI,
We would be grateful to know if your department is willing to assist in producing the document with the information we requested? We respectfully contend adding two to three columns to a table that already exists and populating a very small amount of data should not overly burden your department.
Please forward a cost estimate if this is at issue.
Thank you for your time.
Yours sincerely,
Trav S

FOI, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

8 Attachments

OFFICIAL

PM&C Ref: FOI/2021/123

 

Dear Trav S

 

Thank you for your email.

 

The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (the Department) has
responded to your request with information readily available within the
Department. As previously advised, a document containing the information
you requested does not exist.

 

Agencies are not obliged to create a document for release in response to a
request made under administrative access arrangements, nor under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), except in limited circumstances
outlined in [1]Section 17 of the FOI Act. Please refer to [2]Part 3 of the
FOI Guidelines for additional information regarding documents created
under Section 17.

 

We also draw your attention to the following extract from Part 2 of the
FOI Guidelines:

 

2.33 The right of access under the FOI Act is to existing documents,
rather than to information. The FOI Act does not require an agency or
minister 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 (see Part 3 of these Guidelines). A
request may nevertheless be framed by reference to a document that
contains particular information.

 

The Department has taken reasonable steps to provide access to the
information requested on an administrative basis, and we now consider your
request to be finalised. You are welcome to make another request, noting
the constraints outlined above that apply under the FOI Act when a request
is made for a document that does not exist at the time the FOI request was
made.

 

Yours sincerely

 

FOI Adviser

FOI and Privacy Section| Legal Policy Branch

Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

[3]http://www.dcducks.com/wp-content/themes...
6271 5849 |
[4]http://cdn.mysitemyway.com/icons-waterma... request email]
|
[6]https://www.musicianswithoutborders.org/...

One National Circuit Barton ACT 2600 | PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600

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