Page 3917 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 5 December 2007
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but it is not the official’s job to take into account whether a minister might be embarrassed by the release of documents.
This is the principle that I have applied to the Freedom of Information Act, in and out of government, as a public servant and as a ministerial adviser. I would like to think that I would continue to do that if I was ever privileged to become a minister in the ACT. I think, therefore, that I have a fair track record that gives me some insights into what is needed here.
What we are seeking to do today is to take the first steps to reform administrative law in relation to people’s access to information. The Government Transparency Legislation Amendment Bill does four things. It amends the Financial Management Act to make provisions for the publication of the report of the strategic and functional review of the ACT public sector and services. It highlights the responsibility of respondents in a freedom of information matter to assist the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in reviewing the material in question. It removes most of the circumstances where a minister can issue a certificate under the Freedom of Information Act. And it increases the status and applicability of the model litigant guidelines.
The Stanhope government was elected in 2001 on a platform of reform of the Freedom of Information Act, but it has done nothing about it. The only reforms of the Freedom of Information Act were introduced recently by the current attorney and made it easier to issue conclusive certificates, not harder.
Going through the provisions of this bill, let me say that clauses 1 to 3 are the usual mechanical provisions and clause 4 sets out the purpose. The purpose of the bill is to improve transparency and accountability in the exercise of functions of the ACT territory executive by ensuring that decision makers take all reasonable steps to assist the proceedings of administrative review decisions, promoting freedom of information by limiting the ability of ministers to issue conclusive certificates and establishing a statutory basis for the model litigant guidelines.
The substance of the legislation is contained in the schedule of consequential amendments. The consequential amendments amend the Financial Management Act by inserting a new part 9A which relates to the report of the strategic and functional review of the ACT public sector and services, sometimes referred to as the functional review or the Costello report.
Part 1.1 of the schedule creates a new section 126 of the Financial Management Act which defines and describes the functional review as the report of the strategic and functional review of the ACT public sector and services. And to remove any doubt about the identity of the document, the explanatory memorandum includes a copy of the conclusive certificate issued over this document by the Chief Executive of the Chief Minister’s Department on 5 September 2006.
New clause 127 of the Financial Management Act requires that, three weeks after the commencement of this law, the responsible minister must publish both electronically and in printed form the functional review, and make it available for purchase or inspection. New clause 128 of the FMA makes it clear that the Freedom of Information Act would not provide exemptions to the release of the Costello report once this law is passed.
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