Thistlethwaite briefs Oct-Nov

Oliver Smith made this Freedom of Information request to Department of Home Affairs

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Currently waiting for a response from Department of Home Affairs, they should respond promptly and normally no later than November 29, 2024 (details).

Dear Department of Home Affairs,

Under the FOI Act, I seek a list of the Ministerial Briefs provided by the department to the office of the Hon Matt Thistlethwaite MP as the Assistant Minister for Immigration for the months of September and October 2024, including the PDR number, title and date the brief was provided to the minister’s office. When it comes to the title of the brief, if the department would be required to consult on the release of the title and that consultation would take longer than the 30 day time limit set out in legislation to respond to this request, then the title of the brief can be redacted to expedite this request. To further expedite this request, please exclude all briefs in relation to visa/citizenship issues pertaining to an individual.

Yours faithfully,

Oliver Smith

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Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/10/01924

File Number: FA24/10/01924

Dear Oliver Smith

Acknowledgement of Freedom of Information Access request

This letter acknowledges that on 30 October 2024 the Department of Home
Affairs (the Department) received your request to access documents held
by the Department under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI
Act). This letter also provides important information about your request.

Scope of request

You have requested access to the following:

Under the FOI Act, I seek a list of the Ministerial Briefs provided by the
department to the office of the Hon Matt Thistlethwaite MP as the
Assistant Minister for Immigration for the months of September and October
2024, including the PDR number, title and date the brief was provided to
the minister’s office.
When it comes to the title of the brief, if the department would be
required to consult on the release of the title and that consultation
would take longer than the 30 day time limit set out in legislation to
respond to this request, then the title of the brief can be redacted to
expedite this request. To further expedite this request, please exclude
all briefs in relation to visa/citizenship issues pertaining to an
individual.

Your request has been allocated FOI request number FA 24/10/01924. Please
include your FOI request number in all correspondence with the Freedom of
Information Section.

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Kind regards

Freedom of Information

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch | Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

E: [4][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this
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References

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OFFICIAL

In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 24/10/01924
File Number: FA24/10/01924

Dear Oliver Smith,

I refer to your request received on 30 October 2024 for access to documents under the FOI Act.

The current due date for your request is 29 November 2024. The Department seeks your agreement under section 15AA of the FOI Act to extend the timeframe for the processing of your request by 30 days. This would extend the due date for your request to 29 December 2024.

However, as this date falls on a non-working day, section 36(2) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 provides that the latest date the Department may issue a decision would be the next working day, which is Monday 30 December 2024.

The reason we are seeking an extension of time is due to demand for Departmental documents is high and we continue to experience increasing volumes of incoming requests particularly in recent months. Each request received by the Department is managed in the context of this large volume which can impact the timeliness of our decisions and as such we seek agreement from applicants on extensions of time where possible. We are endeavouring to ensure, as an applicant, you understand the likely timeframe for your request to be finalised. We continue to try to process requests as quickly as possible regardless of if an extension is provided.

If you could please provide a response to this request by close of business, 5 November 2024.

Kind regards,

Lyn
Position Number: 60201320
Privacy, FOI & Records Management Branch | Legal Group
Department of Home Affairs
Email: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

OFFICIAL

-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver Smith <[FOI #12252 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, 30 October 2024 12:36 PM
To: FOI <[Department of Home Affairs request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Thistlethwaite briefs Oct-Nov

Dear Department of Home Affairs,

Yours faithfully,

Oliver Smith

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Important Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and attachments immediately. This email, including attachments, may contain confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.

Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. The Department of Home Affairs, the ABF and the National Emergency Management Agency respect your privacy and have obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this email.

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Dear FOI,

Thanks for your email. This is not a large and complex request and you have permission to avoid third party consultation so there should be no reason not to meet your legal deadline therefore the request is denied.

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Smith

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