This is an HTML version of an attachment to the Freedom of Information request 'Allegations or findings'.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
      
 
 
 
ONE NATIONAL CIRCUIT 
  
BARTON 
 
    FOI 
FOI/2020/273 
 
 
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 1982 
 
REQUEST BY: 
Mr Elmer Fudd 
 
 
DECISION BY:  Mr Matthew Roper 
 
Assistant Secretary 
Industry, Science and Communications 
Branch 

 
 
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx  
 
 
Dear Mr Fudd 
 
I refer to your email of 18 November 2020 in which you made a request (the FOI request
under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) to the Department of the Prime 
Minister and Cabinet (the Department) in the following terms: 
 
I request copies of any documents containing or disclosing the existence of any 
allegation or finding that Scott Morrison as Managing Director of Tourism Australia 
breached or acted inconsistently with any of the following: 
 
a) the Tourism Australia Values or Code of Conduct; 
b) the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997; 
c) the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines; 
d) the Commonwealth Grant Guidelines. 
 
I have requested the same documents from Tourism Australia and the Department of 
Finance. If you transfer this request to either of those bodies, I request that you 
continue to process this request in respect of any documents held by your Department 
which are not held by those bodies. 
 

Authorised decision-maker 
 
I am authorised to make this decision in accordance with arrangements approved by the 
Department’s Secretary under section 23 of the FOI Act.  
 
Decision 
 
I have decided to refuse your request under section 24A(1)(b)(ii) of the FOI Act, on the basis 
that the Department has taken all reasonable steps to locate the documents you have 
requested, and those documents do not exist. 
Postal Address:  PO Box 6500, CANBERRA ACT 2600 
Telephone: +61 2 6271 5849   Fax: +61 2 6271 5776   www.pmc.gov.au   ABN:  18 108 001 191 


 
In making this decision, I have had regard to the following material: 
  the terms of your request; 
  searches undertaken by the Department regarding your request; 
  the FOI Act; and 
 
  the ‘Guidelines issued by the Australian Information Commissioner under section 93A 
of the Freedom of Information Act 1982’ (the FOI Guidelines). 
 
Reasons  
 
Section 24A(1) of the FOI Act provides that: 
 
 

An agency or Minister may refuse a request for access to a document if: 
(a) all reasonable steps have been taken to find the document; 
and 
(b) the agency or Minister is satisfied that the document: 
(i) 
is in the agency’s or Minister’s possession but cannot be found; or 
(ii) 
does not exist. 
 
Searches were undertaken across the Department’s relevant systems and paper records for 
documents within scope of your request. As a result of these searches, no documents relevant 
to your request have been identified. 
 
I am satisfied that all reasonable steps have been taken to find documents relevant to the 
request, and that the requested documents do not exist. I have therefore decided to refuse your 
request under section 24A(1)(b)(ii) of the FOI Act. 
 
Processing and access charges 
 
I have decided not to impose processing charges in respect of your request. 
 
Review rights 
 
Information about your rights of review under the FOI Act is available at 
https://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-information/reviews-and-complaints/. 
 
Complaint rights  
 
You may make a complaint to the Information Commissioner about the Department’s actions 
in relation to a request. Making a complaint about the way the Department has handled an 
FOI request is a separate process to seeking review of the Department’s decision. Further 
information about how to make a complaint is available at https://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-
of-information/reviews-and-complaints/make-an-foi-complaint/.
  
 
Yours sincerely 
 
 
Matthew Roper 
Assistant Secretary 
Industry, Science and Communications Branch 
18 December 2020