OFFICIAL
 
Dear Mr H
 
I refer to your correspondence of 27 October 2019 sent to the Department
of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (the Department) (as set out below) –
our reference FOI/2019/316.
 
Validity
 
This email is to advise that your request below, in its current form, does
not constitute a valid request under the Freedom of Information Act 1982
(FOI Act).
 
If you would like assistance to make a valid FOI request, please feel free
to contact the Department by return email at [1][email address] or
telephone 02 6271 5849.
 
Briefly, section 15 of the FOI Act requires that a request for access to
documents under the FOI Act meets certain requirements. These requirements
are:
-              It must be in writing;
-              It must state it is a request for the purposes of the FOI
Act;
-              It must provide such information as is reasonably necessary
to enable the agency to identify the document/s being sought.
 
Background information
 
We consulted the Attorney-General’s Department (AGD) on your email below.
AGD provided the following general and background comments only, which may
be of interest to you:
 
The Australia Act was enacted by the Commonwealth Parliament at the
request of the Australian States in accordance with section 51(xxxviii) of
the Constitution, which provides that the Commonwealth has legislative
power with respect to:
 
the exercise within the Commonwealth, at the request or with the
concurrence of the Parliaments of all States directly concerned, of any
power which can at the establishment of this Constitution be exercised
only by the Parliament of the United Kingdom or by the Federal Council of
Australasia.
 
The Australia Act 1986 was enacted in virtually identical terms by the
United Kingdom Parliament. As the long title of the Act indicates, it
brought certain arrangements affecting the Commonwealth and the States
into conformity with the status of the Commonwealth of Australia as a
fully independent, federal nation. Section 1, in particular, confirmed
that the United Kingdom Parliament no longer had power to make laws for
Australia.  The High Court has treated the Australia Act as enacted by the
Commonwealth parliament as valid and effective (see, for example,
Attorney-General (WA) v Marquet (2003) 217 CLR 545 at [66]-[67]).
 
If you are seeking legal advice, this is something the Department is not
in a position to provide to you and thus you may wish to seek independent
legal advice on this matter if you continue to have questions. The
Department will take no further action in relation to this enquiry.
 
Regards,
 
FOI Adviser
FOI and Privacy Section | Legal Policy Branch
Government Division | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
p. (02) 6271 5849
e. [2][DPMC request email] | w. [3]www.pmc.gov.au
One National Circuit Barton ACT 2600 | PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600
 
 

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OFFICIAL
Dear Mr H

I refer to your correspondence of 15 November 2019 sent to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (the Department) (as set out below) – our reference FOI/2019/358.

The Department has previously has written to you on this subject matter (refer attached, FOI/2019/319). The Department provided you with information on how to make a valid FOI request and further background information provided by the Attorney-General's Department in relation to the below subject.

The Department will take no further action in relation to this enquiry.

Regards,

FOI Adviser
FOI and Privacy | Legal Policy Branch
Government Division
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
p. +61 2 6271 5849
e. [DPMC request email] |
www.dpmc.gov.au
PO Box 6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600

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