Strengthen Scrutiny of Official Information Act Exemption Clauses (NZ0030)

Objective

To strengthen the scrutiny of legislative clauses that propose to override the disclosure requirements of the Official Information Act 1982.

Ambition

To strengthen the guidance and procedures agencies must follow in relation to the scrutiny of new legislative clauses that propose to override the disclosure requirements of the Official Information Act 1982 in relation to certain information.

Status Quo

Civil society representatives are concerned that current legislative processes regarding proposed clauses to exempt certain information from the release provisions of the Official Information Act 1982 are not adequate. This may result in OIA exemption clauses being introduced when they are not needed. There are now more than 85 clauses in legislation that override the presumption of availability of official information found in section 5 of the Official Information Act 1982. More than 20 have been added as a result of legislation introduced since 2019. Civil society representatives consider such confidentiality provisions may be applied too broadly or only permit disclosure in limited circumstances. This can result in OIA requests being refused under the OIA as being ‘contrary to the provisions of a specified enactment’. There are current safeguards in place, which include the legislative process, guidelines and the Legislative Design and Advisory Committee. It is also the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) role, for example, to provide advice on Bills that interface with the OIA. This commitment will propose recommendations to strengthen guidance and controls around this process. This may include consultation with the Office of the Ombudsman.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi

There may be greater opportunities for Māori to participate in government, as both citizens and iwi members, if more official information is made available.

OGP Values: Transparency, Accountability, Public participation

Milestones

Verifiable and measurable milestones to fulfil the commitment | Start date - End date

Review current legislative processes and guidance in relation to the scrutiny of legislative clauses that propose to override the presumption of disclosure under the Official Information Act 1982 | January 2023 - September 2023

Strengthen processes and guidance to better reflect the presumption of disclosure of government information and the application of the public interest test under the OIA | June 2023 - December 2023

Rollout and communicate the new processes and guidance that support a strengthened test for scrutiny | January 2024 - December 2024

Continue to explore the potential inclusion of reviewing existing exemption clauses in the future | January 2024 - December 2024

Action Plan Review

Commitment 7. Strengthen Scrutiny of Official Information Act Exemption Clauses

● Verifiable: Yes

● Does it have an open government lens? Yes

● Potential for results: Modest