Communications between DFAT and Woodside entites regarding security situation in Myanmar
Dear Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade,
I request, under the Freedom of Information Act 1982, access to records of communications between 1 January 2015 and the date on which this request is received, between representatives of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (‘DFAT') and representatives of Woodside Energy (‘Woodside’), including the following incorporated entities:
- Woodside Petroleum Ltd
- Woodside Energy Ltd
- Woodside Energy Holdings Pty Ltd
- Woodside Energy (Myanmar) Pte Ltd
regarding the security situation in Myanmar.
Please note that I am not seeking the personal contact information of any individual and do not require any individual who is not a representative of DFAT or Woodside to be named in this request.
Yours faithfully,
Brynn O'Brien
UNCLASSIFIED
Our Ref: 1709-F1787
Dear Ms O’Brien
Re: Freedom of Information (FOI) Request
Thank you for your e-mail below in which you seek access under the Freedom
of Information Act 1982 to:
I request, under the Freedom of Information Act 1982, access to records of
communications between 1 January 2015 and the date on which this request
is received, between representatives of the Department of Foreign Affairs
and Trade (‘DFAT') and representatives of Woodside Energy (‘Woodside’),
including the following incorporated entities:
- Woodside Petroleum Ltd
- Woodside Energy Ltd
- Woodside Energy Holdings Pty Ltd
- Woodside Energy (Myanmar) Pte Ltd
regarding the security situation in Myanmar.
Please note that I am not seeking the personal contact information of any
individual and do not require any individual who is not a representative
of DFAT or Woodside to be named in this request.
This e-mail sets out some information about how your request will be
processed by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Searches are now being undertaken in relevant areas of the Department for
documents relevant to your request.
Scope of request:
If it emerges that the scope of your request is unclear or is too large
for processing, the Department will contact you to discuss re-scoping the
request.
Timeframe for receiving our decision:
We received your request on 29 September and the 30-day statutory period
for processing your request commenced from the day after that date. You
should therefore expect a decision from us by 30 October. The period of
30 days may be extended in certain circumstances. We will advise you if
any extension of time is required.
Charges:
Please note that the Department issues charges for processing FOI
requests. We will advise you of these charges when we are in a position
to estimate the resources required to process your request.
Timing of release:
As the subject matter of your request will require DFAT to upload any
documents released to you to the Department’s FOI Disclosure Log, we take
this opportunity to advise you that the Department’s policy is to upload
documents to the disclosure log on the same day as the documents are
released to you.
Exclusion of officials’ names and contact details:
It is the Department’s policy to withhold the mobile numbers of all
government officials, and the names and contact details of government
officials not in the Senior Executive Service (SES) or equivalent. If you
require the mobile numbers of all government officials, or the names and
contact details of non-SES officials, please let us know at
[1][DFAT request email] so the decision-maker may consider; otherwise we will
take it that you agree to that information being excluded from the scope
of your request.
Personal Information:
If we need to consult with other people or organisations regarding your
FOI request, we may need to disclose your personal information (e.g. your
name). When we consult it may be apparent that you have made a request,
even if we do not disclose your identity. Please let us know if you have
any concerns in this regard. The Department’s privacy policy is available
at [2]dfat.gov.au/privacy.html.
Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to
contact us by return e-mail at [3][DFAT request email].
Yours sincerely
DFAT FOI Team.
UNCLASSIFIED
Our ref: 1709-F1787
Dear Ms O'Brien,
The Department’s preliminary examination of the documents relevant to your request has confirmed that the documents include material the disclosure of which may have an effect on the affairs of a business/organisation. The Department therefore needs to consult that business/organisation, as provided for in section 27 of the FOI Act, on whether it wishes to contend that the disclosure of that material would have an adverse effect on its business affairs, as defined in Section 47G of the FOI Act. Please note that section 15(6) of the FOI Act provides that the statutory timeframe for providing an access decision is extended by another 30 days in order to undertake this consultation.
The statutory timeframe will now expire on 29 November. While consultation with the business referred to in the documents is required by the FOI Act, this does not confer a right of veto on the release of documents. The Department’s decision-maker will, however, have regard to any submissions made.
Yours sincerely,
DFAT FOI Team.
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Ms O’Brien,
Please find attached the charges letter in relation to this FOI request.
Yours sincerely,
DFAT FOI Team.
From: FOI
Sent: Tuesday, 3 October 2017 10:15 AM
To: Brynn O'Brien <[FOI #4114 email]>
Subject: RE: Freedom of Information request - Communications between DFAT
and Woodside entites regarding security situation in Myanmar
[SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
UNCLASSIFIED
Our Ref: 1709-F1787
Dear Ms O’Brien
Re: Freedom of Information (FOI) Request
Thank you for your e-mail below in which you seek access under the Freedom
of Information Act 1982 to:
I request, under the Freedom of Information Act 1982, access to records of
communications between 1 January 2015 and the date on which this request
is received, between representatives of the Department of Foreign Affairs
and Trade (‘DFAT') and representatives of Woodside Energy (‘Woodside’),
including the following incorporated entities:
- Woodside Petroleum Ltd
- Woodside Energy Ltd
- Woodside Energy Holdings Pty Ltd
- Woodside Energy (Myanmar) Pte Ltd
regarding the security situation in Myanmar.
Please note that I am not seeking the personal contact information of any
individual and do not require any individual who is not a representative
of DFAT or Woodside to be named in this request.
This e-mail sets out some information about how your request will be
processed by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Searches are now being undertaken in relevant areas of the Department for
documents relevant to your request.
Scope of request:
If it emerges that the scope of your request is unclear or is too large
for processing, the Department will contact you to discuss re-scoping the
request.
Timeframe for receiving our decision:
We received your request on 29 September and the 30-day statutory period
for processing your request commenced from the day after that date. You
should therefore expect a decision from us by 30 October. The period of
30 days may be extended in certain circumstances. We will advise you if
any extension of time is required.
Charges:
Please note that the Department issues charges for processing FOI
requests. We will advise you of these charges when we are in a position
to estimate the resources required to process your request.
Timing of release:
As the subject matter of your request will require DFAT to upload any
documents released to you to the Department’s FOI Disclosure Log, we take
this opportunity to advise you that the Department’s policy is to upload
documents to the disclosure log on the same day as the documents are
released to you.
Exclusion of officials’ names and contact details:
It is the Department’s policy to withhold the mobile numbers of all
government officials, and the names and contact details of government
officials not in the Senior Executive Service (SES) or equivalent. If you
require the mobile numbers of all government officials, or the names and
contact details of non-SES officials, please let us know at
[1][DFAT request email] so the decision-maker may consider; otherwise we will
take it that you agree to that information being excluded from the scope
of your request.
Personal Information:
If we need to consult with other people or organisations regarding your
FOI request, we may need to disclose your personal information (e.g. your
name). When we consult it may be apparent that you have made a request,
even if we do not disclose your identity. Please let us know if you have
any concerns in this regard. The Department’s privacy policy is available
at [2]dfat.gov.au/privacy.html.
Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to
contact us by return e-mail at [3][DFAT request email].
Yours sincerely
DFAT FOI Team.
Locutus Sum left an annotation ()
The applicant has not told Right to Know the status of this request and I have been asked to update the status.
Note 1: Mostly I classify a response like this one to say "clarification requested" because the agency has told the applicant that some more information (or money!) is needed before the request will be processed. With this request, I have put the response in the category of "refused" because it is some time since the agency responded and the applicant does not appear to have made a follow-up. It is possible that a follow-up has been made by the ordinary post or by private email but Right to Know has not heard anything about this. Even if the applicant did not follow-up agency questions, it does not mean that the agency will refuse the request when an application is made in the correct (required) manner.
Note 2: Although an application under the Freedom of Information Act 1983 of the Commonwealth of Australia does not require an application fee, this is not the case with applications in the states and territories of Australia. Then an applicant must usually pay a fee, or the request is not valid. Also, the Commonwealth agencies might demand payment of a fee to cover extra processing costs. If the fee is not paid, the request will not be processed.