OFFICIAL

OFFICIAL

 

Dear Adam,

 

TEQSA acknowledges receipt of your email below requesting access to
documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

 

We received your request on 12 January 2026, and the 30-day statutory time
period for processing your request commenced from the day after that date.
You should therefore expect a decision by Wednesday 11 February. The
period of 30 days may be extended if we need to consult third parties or
for other reasons. We will advise you if this happens.

 

Invitation to narrow the scope of your request

 

We note that the scope of your request appears to be relatively broad, as
you have requested 'any and all documents held by [TEQSA] that relate
to...' the communications described in points 1 - 3. This is because
documents that relate to these communications may include things like
internal emails between TEQSA staff members; internal documents that
mention communications between Dr Russell and the relevant individuals in
your request; and potentially most documents relating to TEQSA’s
compliance assessment into ANU.

 

This broad scope may mean the work involved in processing your request
(including any consultation with third parties) may be such that it could
unreasonably divert the resources of the agency from its operations, for
the purposes of s24AA of the FOI Act. In these circumstances, and before
further work is done to process your request, would you be willing to
narrow the scope of your request, for example, by specifying that you are
only seeking copies of any communications described in points 1 - 3 and
not copies of related documents?

 

We would appreciate if you can get back to us as soon as possible, but no
later than close of business on Monday 19 January 2026, to allow us to
make any determination that needs to be made regarding the scope of your
request.

 

Other matters

 

You will be notified of any charges in relation to your request as soon as
possible, before we process any requested documents or impose a final
charge.

 

Please note that information released under the FOI Act may later be
published online on our [1]disclosure log, subject to certain exceptions.
For example, personal information will not be published where this would
be unreasonable.

 

We will contact you using
[2][FOI #14176 email]. Please advise if you
would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact. If you have any
questions, please contact [3][TEQSA request email].

 

If you do not receive a decision within 30 days (or as otherwise agreed),
or advice that the statutory timeframe has been extended, you can apply to
the Information Commissioner for review of what is called a ‘deemed
decision’. For further information, see the Office of the Australian
Information Commissioner’s website at [4]Apply for an Information
Commissioner review | OAIC.

 

We look forward to your response.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

TEQSA FOI

 

Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency

 

E: [5][TEQSA request email]

[6]Twitter_Logo_Blue[7]@TEQSAGov | [8]www.teqsa.gov.au

 

 

[9][IMG]

 

 

OFFICIAL

-----Original Message-----
From: Adam Smith <[FOI #14176 email]>
Sent: Monday, 12 January 2026 12:22 PM
To: TEQSA - FOI <[TEQSA request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Communication between Dr Mary
Russell and Senator Pocock

 

Dear Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency,

 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 1982, I seek access to any and all
documents held by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency that
relate to:

 

1. Communications between Dr Mary Russell and Senator David Pocock (and/or
his office) between the dates of 1 August 2025 and 31 December 2025.

 

2. Communications between Dr Mary Russell and Dr Liz Allen (Australian
National University (ANU)) between the dates of 1 August 2025 and 31
December 2025.

 

3. Communications between Dr Mary Russell and any member of the ANU
Council between the dates of 1 August 2025 and 31 December 2025.

 

This request includes email, SMS, messaging apps and any other forms of
communication.

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Adam Smith

 

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Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[10][FOI #14176 email]

 

Is [11][TEQSA request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information
requests to Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency? If so, please
contact us using this form:

[12]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This
message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet.
More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:

[13]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.

 

If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.

 

 

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Classification: OFFICIAL

Classified by: [TEQSA request email] on: 15/01/2026 12:09:33 PM

References

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1. https://www.teqsa.gov.au/about-us/report...
2. mailto:[FOI #14176 email]
3. mailto:[TEQSA request email]
4. https://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-infor...
5. mailto:[TEQSA request email]
mailto:[TEQSA request email]
7. Link to TEQSA's Twitter account
https://twitter.com/TEQSAGov
8. http://www.teqsa.gov.au/
http://www.teqsa.gov.au/
9. http://www.teqsa.gov.au/
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11. mailto:[TEQSA request email]
12. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...
13. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

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