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23 Marcus Clarke Street
 
Canberra ACT 2601
 
 
GPO Box 3131
 
Canberra ACT 2601
 
Our ref: 
PRJ1007950   
tel: (02) 6243 1111
Contact officer: 
FOI team 
fax: (02) 6243 1199
Contact phone: 
02 6243 1244 
 
www.accc.gov.au
7 November 2024 
 
Ash Roth 
 
 
Sent via email to: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx 
 
Dear Ash, 
Access refusal – documents do not exist 
I refer to your email of 8 September 2024 and subsequent email of 10 September 
2024 in which you clarified your request for access, under the Freedom of 
Information Act 1982 (Cth), to: 
 
‘I am seeking copies of all communication between the ACCC and The Australia Institute 
(including people acting on behalf of the Australia Institute) from 1 March 2024 to 31 
August 2024 regarding competition policy changes, merger reform policy and legislative 
reform.’ 
Decision 
I have decided to refuse your request under s.24A(1) of the Act on the basis that the 
document does not exist. 
I am authorised under s.23 of the Act to make this decision. 
Reasons for decision 
Section 24A(1) of the Act relevantly provides as follows: 
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. 
 
 
(ii)  does not exist.  
Therefore, we may refuse a request for access to a document if we take all 
reasonable steps to find that document and we are satisfied that the document does 
not exist. 
 

 
The ACCC took the following steps to locate the document: 
  A thorough search of our databases to locate any information or documents that 
relate to your request. 
  A thorough search in the relevant ACCC records management system and email 
mailboxes by staff in the Executive Office, Merger Reform Branch and 
Competition Enforcement, Co-ordination and Strategy Branch for documents 
matching, or similar to, the scope of the request provided by you. 
  Confirmation with relevant ACCC staff that no such document exists. 
Based on the nil results of these steps, I conclude that the requested document does 
not exist within the records of the ACCC. 
Rights of review 
Your rights of review are set out in Attachment A. 
 
Yours sincerely  
 
 
Rebecca Fenech 
FOI Manager 
Specialist Advice and Services Division 
 
 
 
Sent by email 7/11/2024 
 
 
 
2 
 
Attachment A 
Information on rights of review 
ACCC Internal Review 
Under s.54 of the FOI Act, you can ask for an internal review of this decision. If you request 
an internal review request, another officer of the ACCC will review your request and make a 
new decision. 
Timeframe for requesting internal review 
You have 30 days from the receipt of this decision to request an internal review. 
You may seek an extension to this timeframe with our agreement. 
Is there a charge? 
There is no charge payable for requesting an internal review.  
Requesting an internal review 
Your request for internal review must be in writing and indicate that you are seeking an 
internal review. You will need explain why this decision should be changed. 
Please send your internal review request to the FOI Team by: 
Email:  xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx 
When will the decision be made? 
We have 30 days from the receipt of your internal review request to make a decision.   
If we do not make a decision within 30 days or such further period as the IC allows, the 
original decision is considered affirmed. In such circumstances, you can seek review of our 
deemed decision by the Information Commissioner.  
 
Review by the Information Commissioner 
You can ask for a review of this decision by the Australian Information Commissioner (IC). 
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) encourages applicants to 
seek internal review first, however you are not required to go through our internal review 
process before seeking review by the IC. If you do choose to seek an internal review, you 
can still seek IC review of the internal review decision if we refuse access to your request. 
Timeframe for requesting IC review 
You have 60 days from the receipt of an access refusal decision to request IC review. 
You may seek an extension to this timeframe from the OAIC. 
Is there a charge? 
There is no charge payable for requesting an IC review.  
 
 
Requesting IC review 
Your request for IC review must be in writing and include: 
  your name and contact details 
  a copy of the ACCC’s decision that you disagree with (if you’ve received one) 
  the reason(s) why you disagree with the decision 
You can lodge your request for IC review online: 
Online:  https://www.oaic.gov.au/contact-us#reviews  
 
Complaint to the Information Commissioner 
You can request the Information Commissioner to investigate action taken by the ACCC in 
relation to this FOI request. The Information Commissioner will consider your complaint and, 
if appropriate, conduct an investigation. Any investigation will be completely independent. 
Is there a charge? 
There is no charge payable for making a complaint to the IC.  
Lodging an IC complaint 
You must lodge your complaint in writing and give a clear and brief description of each issue 
you’re complaining about and what outcome you’d like. 
You can lodge a complaint online: 
Online:  https://www.oaic.gov.au/contact-us#complaints