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Protest Actions at Australian Airports from August 2024 to September 2024

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Dear Australian Federal Police,

I am making this request in an individual capacity and not on behalf of any organisation or group.

== Background ==
As I understand it, the AFP are responsible for policing at major Australian airports.

There have been multiple protest actions and attempted protest actions by passenger transport drivers (AKA “Uber” or “Rideshare” drivers) across multiple airports. These include but are not limited to Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.

For simplicity, I will use the term “protest” to describe actual or attempted protest, or actual or attempted interruption by passenger transport drivers at Australian airports.

== My Request ==
I request documents created from 1 August 2024 until the date of this request that are connected to the protest actions around the country.

These documents include, but are not limited to:
- Communication between the AFP and the airport corporation
- Communication between the AFP and the platform referred to as “Uber” or “DiDi”
- Communication internally within the AFP
- Communication with any passenger transport drivers referred to above
- Records created in the AFP Computer Aided Dispatch systems and Investigations Management Solution systems

== Exclusions ==
I am happy to exclude as irrelevant:
- Duplicates of documents
- Direct contact details of AFP members and public servants
- Names and contact information of members of the public, but not the name of the company, group or organisation they represent

== Administrative Access and Consultation ==
I attempted to frame this request in a way to eliminate any potential consultation. If you feel there is a need to consult with third parties, I am open to discussing revision of my request to remove this requirement and to expedite processing.

As always, I’m happy to engage in informal consultation with the AFP as a first step before initiating a formal consultation process.

To assist the AFP and promote the objectives of the FOI act, I respectfully request that the AFP considers releasing the documents under administrative access. If this isn’t possible, please consider this a formal FOI request.

Yours faithfully,

Ben Fairless

FOI, Australian Federal Police

1 Attachment

OFFICIAL

 

Dear Mr Fairless,

               

YOUR FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST

 

I refer to your request dated 5 September 2024, seeking access to
documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the Act) as follows:

 

Request:

 

‘I request documents created from 1 August 2024 until the date of this
request that are connected to the protest actions around the country.

 

These documents include, but are not limited to:

 

- Communication between the AFP and the airport corporation

 

- Communication between the AFP and the platform referred to as “Uber” or
“DiDi”

 

- Communication internally within the AFP

 

- Communication with any passenger transport drivers referred to above

 

- Records created in the AFP Computer Aided Dispatch systems and
Investigations Management Solution systems’.

 

Timeframe

 

Your request was received by the AFP on 5 September 2024, and the 30 day
statutory period for processing your request commenced from that date. The
due date for your request is 7 October 2024

 

Upon consideration of your request, the AFP is of the view that your
request will take longer than 30 days to process. The delay is
regrettable, however, due to a significant increase in the volume of
applications at this time and the absence of key personnel to assist with
the processing of requests for information, the AFP will be unable to
finalise this matter within the 30 day time frame. Accordingly, it will
not be possible to advise you of a decision by 7 October 2024. Pursuant to
section 15AA of the Act, I seek your agreement to extend the period by 30
days to notify you of a decision on 4 November 2024. I will endeavour to
provide you with a decision as soon as possible within this timeframe.

 

I would be grateful if you would advise this office in writing of your
agreement to the proposed extension of time by close of business 27
September 2024. 

 

Information irrelevant to the scope of your request

 

The AFP, in its management of FOI requests, excludes the following
information on the basis that is irrelevant to the scope of a request:

 

o duplicate documents, including duplicate emails (the AFP will only
provide emails where they form a final email chain and the
authors/recipients are contained within the final email); and
o information that is publicly available, for example, newspaper
articles, online publications including information available on the
AFP Information Publication Scheme and the AFP disclosure log.

 

You have consented to exclude the following information from the scope of
the request:

 

o Names of AFP members, other than the Senior Executive; and
o Direct telephone numbers, middle names of AFP members, signatures and
mobile telephone numbers of AFP members.

 

Disclosure of your identity

 

The AFP may be required to consult with third parties in accordance with
sections 26A, 27 and 27A of the Act. You consent to the AFP identifying
you as the FOI applicant for the purposes of the consultation.

 

Information Publication Scheme

 

Please be advised that effective 1 May 2011 and in accordance with section
8(2) of the Act, an agency is required to publish information on the AFP
website following the notification of a decision in respect of a freedom
of information request. Details of the decision will be published in a
Disclosure Log which can be found at
[1]https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/informat....

 

The requirement to publish information released under FOI reinforces the
objectives of the FOI Act to promote a pro-disclosure culture across
government, and to increase recognition that information held by
government is a national resource. Exceptions to the requirement to
publish information would apply to personal information and information
concerning the business affairs of a person if it was considered
‘unreasonable’ to do so. 

 

If however, after noting the above, you wish to raise any concerns about
the publication of information concerning your request prior to the
notification of a decision, please advise the AFP in writing before 7
October 2024.

 

If you have any queries in relation to this matter, please do not hesitate
to contact our team at [2][AFP request email].

 

Yours sincerely,

 

CASEY
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION TEAM LEADER | COMMERCIAL, GOVERNANCE & INFORMATION
AFP LEGAL | CORPORATE | CHIEF COUNSEL PORTFOLIO
[3]Australian Federal Police
The Australian Federal Police acknowledges the Traditional Owners and
Custodians of Country
throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, sea and
community. We pay
our respects to First Nations people, culture and Elders past, present and
emerging.

 

**********************************************************************
WARNING

This email message and any attached files may contain information
that is confidential and subject of legal privilege intended only for
use by the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you
are not the intended recipient or the person responsible for
delivering the message to the intended recipient be advised that you
have received this message in error and that any use, copying,
circulation, forwarding, printing or publication of this message or
attached files is strictly forbidden, as is the disclosure of the
information contained therein. If you have received this message in
error, please notify the sender immediately and delete it from your
inbox.

AFP Web site: http://www.afp.gov.au
**********************************************************************

References

Visible links
1. https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/informat...
2. mailto:[AFP request email]
3. http://www.afp.gov.au/

hide quoted sections

Dear FOI,

I consent to a 30 day extension request.

Yours sincerely,

Ben Fairless

FOI, Australian Federal Police

OFFICIAL
Dear Mr Fairless

In regards to your below request, the relevant line area has advised the term "communication" is quite broad in addition to searches having to be conducted across multiple locations.

The AFP is seeking your agreement to refine the scope of your request to the term "correspondence".

It would be greatly appreciated if you could please provided a response by Tuesday, 5 November 2024.

Kind regards

AFP24826
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION TEAM LEADER | COMMERCIAL, GOVERNANCE & INFORMATION
AFP LEGAL | CORPORATE | CHIEF COUNSEL PORTFOLIO

The Australian Federal Police acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Country
throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay
our respects to First Nations people, culture and Elders past, present and emerging.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ben Fairless <[FOI #12008 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 24 September 2024 12:37 PM
To: FOI <[email address]>
Subject: Re: Acknowledgement - Request for Extension of Time - Freedom of Information Request - LEX 3120 [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Dear FOI,

I consent to a 30 day extension request.

Yours sincerely,

Ben Fairless

-----Original Message-----

OFFICIAL

 

Dear Mr Fairless,

               

YOUR FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST

 

I refer to your request dated 5 September 2024, seeking access to

documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the Act) as follows:

 

Request:

 

‘I request documents created from 1 August 2024 until the date of this

request that are connected to the protest actions around the country.

 

These documents include, but are not limited to:

 

- Communication between the AFP and the airport corporation

 

- Communication between the AFP and the platform referred to as “Uber” or

“DiDi”

 

- Communication internally within the AFP

 

- Communication with any passenger transport drivers referred to above

 

- Records created in the AFP Computer Aided Dispatch systems and

Investigations Management Solution systems’.

 

Timeframe

 

Your request was received by the AFP on 5 September 2024, and the 30 day

statutory period for processing your request commenced from that date. The

due date for your request is 7 October 2024

 

Upon consideration of your request, the AFP is of the view that your

request will take longer than 30 days to process. The delay is

regrettable, however, due to a significant increase in the volume of

applications at this time and the absence of key personnel to assist with

the processing of requests for information, the AFP will be unable to

finalise this matter within the 30 day time frame. Accordingly, it will

not be possible to advise you of a decision by 7 October 2024. Pursuant to

section 15AA of the Act, I seek your agreement to extend the period by 30

days to notify you of a decision on 4 November 2024. I will endeavour to

provide you with a decision as soon as possible within this timeframe.

 

I would be grateful if you would advise this office in writing of your

agreement to the proposed extension of time by close of business 27

September 2024. 

 

Information irrelevant to the scope of your request

 

The AFP, in its management of FOI requests, excludes the following

information on the basis that is irrelevant to the scope of a request:

 

o duplicate documents, including duplicate emails (the AFP will only

provide emails where they form a final email chain and the

authors/recipients are contained within the final email); and

o information that is publicly available, for example, newspaper

articles, online publications including information available on the

AFP Information Publication Scheme and the AFP disclosure log.

 

You have consented to exclude the following information from the scope of

the request:

 

o Names of AFP members, other than the Senior Executive; and

o Direct telephone numbers, middle names of AFP members, signatures and

mobile telephone numbers of AFP members.

 

Disclosure of your identity

 

The AFP may be required to consult with third parties in accordance with

sections 26A, 27 and 27A of the Act. You consent to the AFP identifying

you as the FOI applicant for the purposes of the consultation.

 

Information Publication Scheme

 

Please be advised that effective 1 May 2011 and in accordance with section

8(2) of the Act, an agency is required to publish information on the AFP

website following the notification of a decision in respect of a freedom

of information request. Details of the decision will be published in a

Disclosure Log which can be found at

[1]https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/informat....

 

The requirement to publish information released under FOI reinforces the

objectives of the FOI Act to promote a pro-disclosure culture across

government, and to increase recognition that information held by

government is a national resource. Exceptions to the requirement to

publish information would apply to personal information and information

concerning the business affairs of a person if it was considered

‘unreasonable’ to do so. 

 

If however, after noting the above, you wish to raise any concerns about

the publication of information concerning your request prior to the

notification of a decision, please advise the AFP in writing before 7

October 2024.

 

If you have any queries in relation to this matter, please do not hesitate

to contact our team at [2][AFP request email].

 

Yours sincerely,

 

CASEY

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION TEAM LEADER | COMMERCIAL, GOVERNANCE & INFORMATION

AFP LEGAL | CORPORATE | CHIEF COUNSEL PORTFOLIO

[3]Australian Federal Police

The Australian Federal Police acknowledges the Traditional Owners and

Custodians of Country

throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, sea and

community. We pay

our respects to First Nations people, culture and Elders past, present and

emerging.

 

References

Visible links

1. https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/informat...

2. mailto:[AFP request email]

3. http://www.afp.gov.au/

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[FOI #12008 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.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
**********************************************************************
WARNING

This email message and any attached files may contain information
that is confidential and subject of legal privilege intended only for
use by the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you
are not the intended recipient or the person responsible for
delivering the message to the intended recipient be advised that you
have received this message in error and that any use, copying,
circulation, forwarding, printing or publication of this message or
attached files is strictly forbidden, as is the disclosure of the
information contained therein. If you have received this message in
error, please notify the sender immediately and delete it from your
inbox.

AFP Web site: http://www.afp.gov.au
**********************************************************************

hide quoted sections

Dear AFP24826,

Thanks for your message. I must admit to being quite confused. What does the line area mean by “the term "communication" is quite broad”?

To put it another way, what searches would not be completed if I changed “communication” to “correspondence”?

If you need more time to process the request let me know.

Yours sincerely,

Ben Fairless

FOI, Australian Federal Police

OFFICIAL
Dear Mr Fairless

Thank you for your below email.

My apologies for the confusion. I have been liaised with the relevant operational area and they have asked if the term 'correspondence' could replace the term 'communication' that you have in your current scope, to ensure both parties have the same interpretation of the documents captured. The documents are ready for assessment if you are agreeable to the term 'correspondence'.

It would be greatly appreciated if you are able to provide a response by Tuesday, 12 November 2024.

Kind regards

AFP24826
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION TEAM LEADER | COMMERCIAL, GOVERNANCE & INFORMATION
AFP LEGAL | CORPORATE | CHIEF COUNSEL PORTFOLIO

The Australian Federal Police acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Country
throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay
our respects to First Nations people, culture and Elders past, present and emerging.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ben Fairless <[FOI #12008 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, 6 November 2024 4:53 AM
To: FOI <[email address]>
Subject: RE: Acknowledgement - Request for Extension of Time - Freedom of Information Request - LEX 3120 [SEC=OFFICIAL] [AFP-L.FID190185]

Dear AFP24826,

Thanks for your message. I must admit to being quite confused. What does the line area mean by “the term "communication" is quite broad”?

To put it another way, what searches would not be completed if I changed “communication” to “correspondence”?

If you need more time to process the request let me know.

Yours sincerely,

Ben Fairless

-----Original Message-----

OFFICIAL

Dear Mr Fairless

In regards to your below request, the relevant line area has advised the term "communication" is quite broad in addition to searches having to be conducted across multiple locations.

The AFP is seeking your agreement to refine the scope of your request to the term "correspondence".

It would be greatly appreciated if you could please provided a response by Tuesday, 5 November 2024.

Kind regards

AFP24826

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION TEAM LEADER | COMMERCIAL, GOVERNANCE & INFORMATION

AFP LEGAL | CORPORATE | CHIEF COUNSEL PORTFOLIO

The Australian Federal Police acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Country

throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay

our respects to First Nations people, culture and Elders past, present and emerging.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[FOI #12008 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.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
**********************************************************************
WARNING

This email message and any attached files may contain information
that is confidential and subject of legal privilege intended only for
use by the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you
are not the intended recipient or the person responsible for
delivering the message to the intended recipient be advised that you
have received this message in error and that any use, copying,
circulation, forwarding, printing or publication of this message or
attached files is strictly forbidden, as is the disclosure of the
information contained therein. If you have received this message in
error, please notify the sender immediately and delete it from your
inbox.

AFP Web site: http://www.afp.gov.au
**********************************************************************

hide quoted sections

We don't know whether the most recent response to this request contains information or not – if you are Ben Fairless please sign in and let everyone know.