30 January 2013
Mr Paul Warren
Sent via email:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Our Ref: FOI1213/10.06
Dear Mr Warren,
FOI Application
I am writing in relation to your request made under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (
the FOI Act). In particular,
you were seeking access to:
1. Any documents relating to the processes and policies for compiling and releasing your quarterly
construction statistics.
2. Any documents that list the completion status of the Points of Interconnect (POIs).
3. Premises Passed and Connected Services statistics for the final quarter of 2012.
Information Already in Public Domain
As previously advised, it is NBN Co’s standard practice to consider information in the public domain as to be out of
scope of an FOI request. In that regard, NBN Co already provided you with information relating to the 2nd point
above, found at
: http://www.nbnco.com.au/getting-connected/service-providers/network-rollout.html, with the most
recent POI statistics found at the following link
: http://www.nbnco.com.au/assets/documents/rollout-info-pois-dec-
2012.pdf. In addition, NBN Co published a media release on 29 January 2013, which includ
ed key NBN Co
metrics. Those metrics included statistics relating to the 3rd point, with data current to end of December 2012.
Request to narrow scope of application
In relation to the remaining point (1) above, I am unclear as to the scope of the FOI application. In particular, your
request refers to “any documents relating to the processes and policies for compiling and releasing your quarterly
construction statistics”. In that context, it is unclear as to the type of documents that you are seeking.
In addition, the current FOI request terms would require NBN Co staff to search through the company’s hard and soft
copy records, as well as approximately 1800 staff members’ email records over an approximately three year period.
As you can imagine, this would involve a very substantial amount of review and processing time, particularly as the
above terms are uncertain. Moreover, this would not take into account the time required to identify and review
relevant documents, as well as make a formal decision in relation to such documents. Without sufficient clarity, any
searches would likely constitute an unreasonable diversion of NBN Co’s resources. It would be of assistance to limit
your request to:
Specific types of documents, such as policies, briefs, etc.;
Only specific versions of documents, such as final or milestone drafts; and
Excluding certain documents, such as draft version of reports, documents subject to legal privilege, etc.
A Level 11, 100 Arthur Street, North Sydney NSW 2060
P +61 2 9926 1900
F +61 2 9926 1901
E xxxx@xxxxx.xxx.xx
W www.nbnco.com.au
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In light of the above points – and as per section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, I am of the opinion that the scope of this
request is not sufficiently precise to enable NBN Co to identify relevant documents. As such, our company cannot
commence the processing of this application.
In that context, I would ask that you contact the writer on the
numbers listed below and discuss the terms of this application. Until I have clarified the scope of this request,
the 30-day processing period will not begin to run.
If you have any questions or need to discuss your application, please feel free to contact the writer on Tel. (02) 8918
8596 or via email
on xxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx.xx.
Sincerely,
David J Mesman
FOI Officer
A Level 11, 100 Arthur Street, North Sydney NSW 2060
P +61 2 9926 1900
F +61 2 9926 1901
E xxxx@xxxxx.xxx.xx
W www.nbnco.com.au
2
