27 July 2016
Reference numbers
FOI Request FA 16/04/01254
File Number ADF2016/16398
Mr Dwayne Brewski
Sent via email:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Freedom of Information request – decision on request
Dear Mr Brewski,
This letter refers to your request received on 15 April 2016 seeking access under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) to the following documents:
1) current social media policy of the department, which covers departmental use and/or
private use by employees in an individual capacity
2) any guidance material which is available for employees to make informed decisions
about their social media use.
Decision
This letter is to provide you with my decision, which is to release the documents you have
requested without exemptions (although material irrelevant to your request has been
deleted).
The reasons for the decision are set out in the attached Decision Record at
Attachment A.
The schedule for these documents is at
Attachment B for your reference.
Review rights Internal review
If you disagree with my decision, you have the right to apply for an internal review by the
Department of my decision. Any request for internal review must be provided to the
Department within 30 days of you being notified of the decision. Where possible please
attach reasons why you believe review of the decision is necessary. The internal review will
be carried out by an officer other than the original decision-maker and the Department must
make a review decision within 30 days.
6 Chan Street Belconnen ACT 2617
PO Box 25 BELCONNEN ACT 2616 • Telephone: 02 6264 1111 • Fax: 02 6225 6970 • www.border.gov.au
- 2 -
Applications for review should be sent to:
Freedom of Information
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
PO Box 25
BELCONNEN ACT 2617
Or by email to:
xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx
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 my decision. You must apply in writing within 60 days of this notice. For further
information about review rights and how to submit a review request to the OAIC, please see
FOI fact sheet 12 ‘
Freedom of information – Your review rights’, available online
at
www.oaic.gov.au .
How to make a complaint about the handling of this FOI request
You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the Australian Information
Commissioner about action taken by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection in
relation to your request.
The Ombudsman will consult with the Australian Information Commissioner before
investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.
Your enquiries to the Ombudsman can be directed to:
Phone 1300 362 072 (local call charge)
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
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 Ombudsman or 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 Immigration and Border Protection as the
relevant agency.
- 3 -
Contacting the FOI Section If you wish to discuss this matter, I can be contacted using the details provided below.
Kind regards,
Brad Collins
Freedom of Information Officer
Information Management Branch
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
Email:
xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx
Attachments
• Attachment A – Decision Record
• Attachment B – Schedule of Documents
• Attachment C – Extract of relevant legislation
• Attachment D – Documents released under the FOI Act
Attachment A – DECISION RECORD
Request Details FOI Request FA 16/04/01254
File Number ADF2016/16398
Scope of request
1. On 15 April 2016 you requested:
1) current social media policy of the department, which covers departmental use and/or
private use by employees in an individual capacity
2) any guidance material which is available for employees to make informed decisions
about their social media use.
Documents in scope
2. There are three documents within scope of your request, consisting of a policy document,
a fact sheet, and a relevant page from an internal staff newsletter.
Authority to make decision
3. I am an officer authorised under section 23 of the FOI Act to make decisions in respect of
requests to access documents or to amend or annotate Departmental records.
Information considered
4. In reaching my decision, I have considered the following:
• the terms of your request
• the
Freedom of Information Act 1982
• the Australian Information Commissioner’s guidelines relating to access to documents
held by government
• Departmental documents, identified in the Schedule of Documents
• consultation with the relevant Departmental business area.
Reasons for decision
5. Section 22(2) of the FOI Act provides that, where an agency reaches the view that a
document contains exempt information or material that is irrelevant to the request and it
is possible for the agency to prepare an edited copy of the document with the irrelevant
or exempt material deleted, then the agency must prepare such a copy.
6. This edited copy must be provided to the applicant. Further, the decision maker must
advise the applicant in writing that the edited copy of the document has been prepared
and of the reasons(s) for each of the deletions in the document (s.22(3) of the FOI Act).
6 Chan Street Belconnen ACT 2617
PO Box 25 BELCONNEN ACT 2616 • Telephone: 02 6264 1111 • Fax: 02 6225 6970 • www.border.gov.au
- 5 -
7. Exempt material is deleted pursuant to s.22(1)(a)(i) and irrelevant material is deleted
pursuant to s.22(1)(a)(ii) of the FOI Act.
Deletion of exempt material under s.22(1)(a)(i) of the FOI Act
8. No information has been exempted from release.
Deletion of irrelevant material under s.22(1)(a)(ii) of the FOI Act
9. I find that some of the documents relevant to your request contain material which is
irrelevant to your FOI request. I have withheld or deleted that material accordingly.
These deletions are detailed in the Schedule of Documents and the documents released.
10. The material deleted under s.22(1)(a)(ii) comprises internal contact details for the
Integrity and Professional Standards section, and headings from the internal newsletter
that are irrelevant to the scope of your request.
Brad Collins
Authorised decision maker
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
Email:
xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx
27 July 2016
Attachment B – SCHEDULE OF DOCUMENTS TO DECISION RECORD
FOI Request FA 16/04/01254
File Number ADF2016/16398
No.
Date of document
Pages Description
Relevant legislation (FOI Act)
1.
J
un 2015
1-11
Policy document
Released in full
–
2.
J
uly 2015
12-14 Fact sheet
Irrelevant to scope
22(1)(a)(ii)
(Withheld in part)
3.
D
ecember 2015
15
Staff newsletter
Irrelevant to scope
22(1)(a)(ii)
(Withheld in part)
6 Chan Street Belconnen ACT 2617
PO Box 25 BELCONNEN ACT 2616 • Telephone: 02 6264 1111 • Fax: 02 6225 6970 • www.border.gov.au
- 7 -
Attachment C – Extract of relevant legislation
22 Access to edited copies with exempt or irrelevant matter deleted
Scope
(1) This section applies if:
(a) an agency or Minister decides:
(i) to refuse to give access to an exempt document; or
(ii) that to give access to a document would disclose information that
would reasonably be regarded as irrelevant to the request for access;
and
(b) it is possible for the agency or Minister to prepare a copy (an
edited copy)
of the document, modified by deletions, ensuring that:
(i) access to the edited copy would be required to be given under
section 11A (access to documents on request); and
(ii) the edited copy would not disclose any information that would
reasonably be regarded as irrelevant to the request; and
(c) it is reasonably practicable for the agency or Minister to prepare the edited
copy, having regard to:
(i) the nature and extent of the modification; and
(ii) the resources available to modify the document; and
(d) it is not apparent (from the request or from consultation with the applicant)
that the applicant would decline access to the edited copy.
Access to edited copy
(2) The agency or Minister must:
(a) prepare the edited copy as mentioned in paragraph (1)(b); and
(b) give the applicant access to the edited copy.
Notice to applicant
(3) The agency or Minister must give the applicant notice in writing:
(a) that the edited copy has been prepared; and
(b) of the grounds for the deletions; and
(c) if any matter deleted is exempt matter—that the matter deleted is exempt
matter because of a specified provision of this Act.
(4) Section 26 (reasons for decision) does not apply to the decision to refuse access
to the whole document unless the applicant requests the agency or Minister to
give the applicant a notice in writing in accordance with that section.
Document Outline
