Bill priorities
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
This is a request under the FOI Act.
Could you please provide the bills list marked with the Government's priority rating for each bill as at the first day of the most recent Autumn, Spring and Winter Parliamentary sessions.
I request that any fees in relation to this request be waived. The material is in the public interest because it will assist in communicating and debating the Government's legislative priorities.
Yours faithfully,
Jackson Gothe-Snape
UNCLASSIFIED
FOI/2016/065
Dear Mr Gothe-Snape
Thank you for your email dated 31 March 2016, received by the Department
of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (the Department), in which you made a
request to the Department under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the
FOI Act) in the following terms:
Could you please provide the bills list marked with the Government's
priority rating for each bill as at the first day of the most recent
Autumn, Spring and Winter Parliamentary sessions.
Access to public lists and invitation to withdraw FOI request
The decision-maker has formed the preliminary view that the documents to
which you have sought access are Cabinet documents and would likely be
exempt from release under section 34 of the FOI Act. This is because the
Parliamentary Business Committee of Cabinet considers priorities for the
Australian Government's legislation program.
To assist in your request, the decision-maker is happy to provide you with
access to the attached public lists for legislation proposed for
introduction in the Autumn 2016, Spring 2015 and Winter 2015 sittings. The
public list of bills is published on the PM&C website prior to the
commencement of each sitting period. The public list can be found on the
PM&C website at: [1]http://www.dpmc.gov.au/pmc/parliamentary....
We trust this information goes some way to meeting your request documents,
but please note that these public lists do not include all bills and do
not include the ‘Government’s priority rating’ for all bills on the list.
Having regard to the attached documents and the decision-maker’s
preliminary view that the documents you have sought would likely be exempt
from release, we kindly seek your agreement to withdraw your FOI request.
We would be grateful if you could please respond by next Monday, 18 April
2016 confirming your agreement to withdraw your FOI request.
Regards
Adviser
Access and Administrative Review Section | Honours, Symbols and Legal
Policy Branch
Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
p. 02 6271 5849
e. [2][email address]
[3]www.dpmc.gov.au | [4]www.indigenous.gov.au
PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600
[5]Description: Description: Description: FOI design element
References
Visible links
1. http://www.dpmc.gov.au/pmc/parliamentary...
2. mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.dpmc.gov.au/
4. http://www.indigenous.gov.au/
Thank you for the reply.
Please revise my request to a list of all proposed legislation at the aforementioned points in time and I will ask Christopher for the priority ratings.
Yours sincerely,
Jackson Gothe-Snape
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Gothe-Snape,
The decision-maker considers that your revised request does not change the preliminary view that the documents to which you have sought access are Cabinet documents and would likely be exempt from release under section 34 of the FOI Act.
Noting you have been provided public documents relevant to your request, we kindly seek your agreement to withdraw your FOI request by this Wednesday, 20 April 2016.
Regards
Adviser
Access and Administrative Review Section | Honours, Symbols and Legal Policy Branch Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet p. 02 6271 5849 e. [email address] www.dpmc.gov.au | www.indigenous.gov.au PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600
Thanks for getting back to me.
Perhaps an alternative approach may be helpful here. I am seeking to determine what bills Departments have been pursuing but have not had the opportunity to table in Parliament.
Information about bill preparation in each Department is widely circulated and can be FOI'd separately in requests to each Department. However according to the preliminary advice you have provided, as soon as this information reaches DPMC it becomes a cabinet record.
Could you please advise the best way for me to request information that would assist my inquiries?
I am looking for a solution that means I don't burden FOI officers in each Department with a separate request.
I await your reply. Upon receipt I will consider withdrawing or amending the request.
Yours sincerely,
Jackson Gothe-Snape
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Gothe-Snape,
Please see attached correspondence in relation to your FOI request with
the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet – reference:
FOI/2016/065.
Regards
FOI Administration Officer/Adviser
Access and Administrative Review | Honours, Symbols and Legal Policy
Branch
Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
p. +61 2 6271 5849
e. | [1][DPMC request email] | [2]www.dpmc.gov.au
PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600
.
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
2. http://www.dpmc.gov.au/