Head of Power
Dear Australian Government Solicitor,
We request the instrument that provided for the Head of Power that empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the Digital ID Bill 2023, was it:
1) The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, relevant being Clause 2, Head of Power being King Charles III, his heirs and successors, in the sovereignty of the United Kingdom, or,
2) The Australia Act 1986, Head of power being Queen of Australia, or,
3) Another document or instrument?
Regards,
Jillian
Commonwealth National
Yours faithfully,
Jillian
Thank you for contacting the Freedom of Information (FOI) team at the
Attorney-General’s Department (the department). We get a high volume of
emails and FOI applications and work to respond as promptly as possible.
This email acknowledges your correspondence and provides some general
information in relation to FOI.
Please note that we will only respond to emails about the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act). For information on how to make a
request under the FOI Act please refer to:
https://www.ag.gov.au/rights-and-protect....
For enquiries about other matters, please refer to:
https://www.ag.gov.au/about-us/connect-u...
The statutory processing time for FOI requests is 30 days, however this
may be extended if the department needs to consult third parties or for
other reasons. If you have submitted an FOI request, the department will
write to you again within 30 days of receiving your request. This
correspondence may:
* seek further information from you to help us process your request,
* provide you with a decision on your FOI request, or
* discuss whether an extension of time is needed to process your request.
Please do not send duplicate emails as this may cause delays to processing
times.
This FOI inbox is monitored business hours Monday to Friday, excluding
public holidays.
You can expect our team to provide a helpful, respectful service and we
expect respectful engagement in return.
Under s 89L of the FOI Act, disrespectful, threatening or abusive language
may be an abuse of the access action process. If this happens, we may not
be able to help you or we might take steps to manage how we communicate
with you.
If you have received this transmission in error please notify us
immediately by return e-mail and delete all copies. If this e-mail or any
attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of
information in the e-mail or attachments.
If you have received this transmission in error please notify us
immediately by return e-mail and delete all copies. If this e-mail or any
attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of
information in the e-mail or attachments.
Dear applicant
We refer to your email dated 27 March 2024 and note that it has been addressed to the Australian Government Solicitor (AGS) and received by the Attorney-General's Department.
In order for the department to process your email as a valid FOI request, we require the following information from you:
• Please confirm in writing that your request is an application for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) and confirm whether you intended for the request to be processed by the Attorney-General's department.
Please note, the department is unable to take further action in response to your email of 27 March 2024 until the additional information requested above has been received.
Regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
A Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | | Email: [AGS request email]
-----Original Message-----
From: Jillian <[FOI #11276 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, 27 March 2024 8:36 PM
To: AGD FOI Requests <[AGS request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Head of Power
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not follow guidance, click links, or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear Australian Government Solicitor,
We request the instrument that provided for the Head of Power that empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the Digital ID Bill 2023, was it:
1) The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, relevant being Clause 2, Head of Power being King Charles III, his heirs and successors, in the sovereignty of the United Kingdom, or,
2) The Australia Act 1986, Head of power being Queen of Australia, or,
3) Another document or instrument?
Regards,
Jillian
Commonwealth National
Yours faithfully,
Jillian
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #11276 email]
Is [AGS request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests to Australian Government Solicitor? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...
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:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...
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.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
The Attorney-General’s Department may collect your personal information where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, our functions, including those under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) and the Privacy Act 1988. We may collect your name, email address and telephone number so that we can contact you about your request or privacy complaint. If your request concerns accessing or correcting your personal information, we will collect the minimum amount of evidence necessary to verify your identity. We hold personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act and our privacy policy. If you have an enquiry or complaint about your privacy, please contact the Privacy Officer on 02 6141 6666 or via e-mail [email address].
If you have received this email in error, please notify us immediately by return email and delete all copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.
Dear "Freedom of Information & Privacy",
"your request is an application for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act)"
The purpose of the request is for the discovery of documents that evidence a/the power to enact legislation pursuant to the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution.
.. and "confirm whether you intended for the request to be processed by the Attorney-General's department."
I am happy for the response to be processed by the most competent office to do so. As the Australian Government Solicitors are the consultants of the Australian Government on matters of law, I would expect they are best qualified to respond, but if the Attorney-General or his office can provide the documents requested, I do not mind which office provides the document/s.
Regards,
Jillian
Thank you for contacting the Freedom of Information (FOI) team at the
Attorney-General’s Department (the department). We get a high volume of
emails and FOI applications and work to respond as promptly as possible.
This email acknowledges your correspondence and provides some general
information in relation to FOI.
Please note that we will only respond to emails about the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act). For information on how to make a
request under the FOI Act please refer to:
https://www.ag.gov.au/rights-and-protect....
For enquiries about other matters, please refer to:
https://www.ag.gov.au/about-us/connect-u...
The statutory processing time for FOI requests is 30 days, however this
may be extended if the department needs to consult third parties or for
other reasons. If you have submitted an FOI request, the department will
write to you again within 30 days of receiving your request. This
correspondence may:
* seek further information from you to help us process your request,
* provide you with a decision on your FOI request, or
* discuss whether an extension of time is needed to process your request.
Please do not send duplicate emails as this may cause delays to processing
times.
This FOI inbox is monitored business hours Monday to Friday, excluding
public holidays.
You can expect our team to provide a helpful, respectful service and we
expect respectful engagement in return.
Under s 89L of the FOI Act, disrespectful, threatening or abusive language
may be an abuse of the access action process. If this happens, we may not
be able to help you or we might take steps to manage how we communicate
with you.
If you have received this transmission in error please notify us
immediately by return e-mail and delete all copies. If this e-mail or any
attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of
information in the e-mail or attachments.
If you have received this transmission in error please notify us
immediately by return e-mail and delete all copies. If this e-mail or any
attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of
information in the e-mail or attachments.
Dear Jillian
Thank you for your response. We will now process your request for documents to the Attorney-General’s Department (the department), which incorporates the Australian Government Solicitor. The department will manage this process.
Please be advised that requests under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 enable access to existing documents held by government agencies, rather than providing a means of requesting answers to questions. In order to assist you, we propose that you consider revising your request to specify the document being requested. For example:
I request the instrument that provided for the Head of Power that empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the Digital ID Bill 2023.
We seek your agreement to process your request in the above revised terms. Alternatively, if we have not interpreted your request correctly, please advise the terms that more accurately describe the specific documents to which you seek access.
We look forward to your response.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGS request email]
-----Original Message-----
From: Jillian <[FOI #11276 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 2 April 2024 9:52 PM
To: AGD FOI Requests <[AGS request email]>
Subject: RE: Freedom of Information request - Head of Power
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not follow guidance, click links, or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear "Freedom of Information & Privacy", "your request is an application for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act)"
The purpose of the request is for the discovery of documents that evidence a/the power to enact legislation pursuant to the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution.
.. and "confirm whether you intended for the request to be processed by the Attorney-General's department."
I am happy for the response to be processed by the most competent office to do so. As the Australian Government Solicitors are the consultants of the Australian Government on matters of law, I would expect they are best qualified to respond, but if the Attorney-General or his office can provide the documents requested, I do not mind which office provides the document/s.
Regards,
Jillian
-----Original Message-----
Dear applicant
We refer to your email dated 27 March 2024 and note that it has been addressed to the Australian Government Solicitor (AGS) and received by the Attorney-General's Department.
In order for the department to process your email as a valid FOI request, we require the following information from you:
• Please confirm in writing that your request is an application for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) and confirm whether you intended for the request to be processed by the Attorney-General's department.
Please note, the department is unable to take further action in response to your email of 27 March 2024 until the additional information requested above has been received.
Regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
A Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | | Email: [AGS request email]
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #11276 email]
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:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...
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.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
The Attorney-General’s Department may collect your personal information where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, our functions, including those under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) and the Privacy Act 1988. We may collect your name, email address and telephone number so that we can contact you about your request or privacy complaint. If your request concerns accessing or correcting your personal information, we will collect the minimum amount of evidence necessary to verify your identity. We hold personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act and our privacy policy. If you have an enquiry or complaint about your privacy, please contact the Privacy Officer on 02 6141 6666 or via e-mail [email address].
If you have received this email in error, please notify us immediately by return email and delete all copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.
Dear Attorney-General’s Department FOI Requests,
Thank you, your suggested revised request is acceptable, with one small amendment.
I request the instrument pursuant to, and not repugnant to, the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution that provided for the Head of Power that empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the Digital ID Bill 2023.
Regards,
Jillian
OFFICIAL
Dear Jillian
Thank you for revising your request and our apologies for the delay in our
reply. We understand your request to now be as follows:
I request the instrument pursuant to, and not repugnant to, the
Commonwealth of Australia Constitution that provided for the Head of Power
that empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the
Digital ID Bill 2023.
We write to advise that pursuing the request in its current form is likely
to result in a refusal under s 24A of the [1]FOI Act (which relates to
documents lost or non-existent). This is because the only document we
consider within scope of your request to which we can facilitate access is
the Constitution itself.
We are unable to provide advice or analysis about the relationship between
the Constitution and enactment of the Digital ID Bill. However, if you
wish to further revise the scope of your request to request documents that
discuss both the Constitution and the Digital ID Bill, we will undertake
searches to that effect in order to assist you.
Please let us know how you would like to proceed. Please note, as outlined
further above, if we do not hear from you we will process your request as
it currently reads, which may result in a s 24A refusal.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGS request email]
-----Original Message-----
From: Jillian <[FOI #11276 email]>
Sent: Thursday, 4 April 2024 6:14 PM
To: AGD FOI Requests <[AGS request email]>
Subject: Re: FOI24/171: Freedom of Information request - Head of Power
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not
follow guidance, click links, or open attachments unless you recognise the
sender and know the content is safe.
Dear Attorney-General’s Department FOI Requests,
Thank you, your suggested revised request is acceptable, with one small
amendment.
I request the instrument pursuant to, and not repugnant to, the
Commonwealth of Australia Constitution that provided for the Head of Power
that empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the
Digital ID Bill 2023.
Regards,
Jillian
-----Original Message-----
Dear Jillian
Thank you for your response. We will now process your request for
documents to the Attorney-General’s Department (the department), which
incorporates the Australian Government Solicitor. The department will
manage this process.
Please be advised that requests under the Freedom of Information Act 1982
enable access to existing documents held by government agencies, rather
than providing a means of requesting answers to questions. In order to
assist you, we propose that you consider revising your request to specify
the document being requested. For example:
I request the instrument that provided for the Head of Power that
empowered the Parliament of the Australian Government to enact the Digital
ID Bill 2023.
We seek your agreement to process your request in the above revised terms.
Alternatively, if we have not interpreted your request correctly, please
advise the terms that more accurately describe the specific documents to
which you seek access.
We look forward to your response.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGS request email]
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[2][FOI #11276 email]
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:
[3]https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...
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.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
OFFICIAL
The Attorney-General’s Department may collect your personal information
where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, our
functions, including those under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI
Act) and the Privacy Act 1988. We may collect your name, email address and
telephone number so that we can contact you about your request or privacy
complaint. If your request concerns accessing or correcting your personal
information, we will collect the minimum amount of evidence necessary to
verify your identity. We hold personal information in accordance with the
Privacy Act and our privacy policy. If you have an enquiry or complaint
about your privacy, please contact the Privacy Officer on 02 6141 6666 or
via e-mail [email address].
If you have received this email in error, please notify us immediately by
return email and delete all copies. If this email or any attachments have
been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute waiver of any
confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the
email or attachments.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A025...
2. mailto:[FOI #11276 email]
3. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...
OFFICIAL
Dear Jillian
Freedom of Information Request FOI24/171
We refer to your request to the Attorney-General's Department (the
department) under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) for access
to documents.
The purpose of this email is to provide you with a decision in response to
that request.
Please find attached your decision letter, including your review rights.
If you have any questions, please contact us by telephone on (02) 6141
6666 or by email to [1][AGS request email].
Kind regards,
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [2][AGS request email]
OFFICIAL
The Attorney-General’s Department may collect your personal information
where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, our
functions, including those under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI
Act) and the Privacy Act 1988. We may collect your name, email address and
telephone number so that we can contact you about your request or privacy
complaint. If your request concerns accessing or correcting your personal
information, we will collect the minimum amount of evidence necessary to
verify your identity. We hold personal information in accordance with the
Privacy Act and our privacy policy. If you have an enquiry or complaint
about your privacy, please contact the Privacy Officer on 02 6141 6666 or
via e-mail [email address].
If you have received this email in error, please notify us immediately by
return email and delete all copies. If this email or any attachments have
been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute waiver of any
confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the
email or attachments.
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[AGS request email]
2. mailto:[AGS request email]