Crime and Corruption Act 2001

The main purposes of this section are—

to make declarations about the lawfulness and validity of actions taken before 9 November 2013 under or purportedly under this Act and the repealed Public Records Act 2002 in relation to inquiry public records and the application of restricted access periods to those records (including changes to the periods); and

to apply a new restricted access period to all inquiry public records given to the archives before 9 November 2013; and

to provide for changes to be made under this section to the restricted access period for an inquiry public record mentioned in paragraph (b) in a way that does not limit the application of the Public Records Act 2023.

It is declared that an inquiry public record given to the archives before 9 November 2013 by the commission or purportedly by the commission—

was and continues to be a public record lawfully given to the archives despite anything to the contrary in this Act, including, for example, section 375; and

was and continues to be validly given to the archives by the commission as the responsible public authority for that public record under the repealed Public Records Act 2002 or the Public Records Act 2023.

It is also declared that a restricted access period for an inquiry public record that applied, or purportedly applied, under the repealed Public Records Act 2002 before 9 November 2013, because of an action by the commission or purportedly by the commission, was validly applied under that Act as the restricted access period for the inquiry public record.

Despite subsection (3), for each inquiry public record mentioned in subsection (2) a new restricted access period of 65 years after the day of the last action on the record, by this subsection, applies to the public record.

The commission may, by written notice given to the archivist, change the restricted access period for an inquiry public record as applied under subsection (4) or as changed by a notice previously given under this subsection.

For the Public Records Act 2023, part 3—

the restricted access period for an inquiry public record as applied under subsection (4) is taken to be the restricted access period under that Act for the record; and

a notice given under subsection (5) for an inquiry public record is taken to be a restricted access notice given under section 32 of that Act for that record.

Except as otherwise provided, this section does not limit the application of the Public Records Act 2023 in relation to an inquiry public record or the restricted access period for an inquiry public record, including, for example, the application of any provision in part 3 of that Act.Note for subsection (7)—Nothing in this section prevents a notice being given under the Public Records Act 2023, section 32, to change the restricted access period applied under subsection (4), or changed under subsection (5), for an inquiry public record.

This section applies despite —

anything to the contrary in this Act, the repealed Public Records Act 2002 or the Public Records Act 2023; or

anything done or omitted to be done before 9 November 2013 under, or purportedly done under, this Act or the repealed Public Records Act 2002 in relation to an inquiry public record.

In this section—archives means the archives under the repealed Public Records Act 2002, schedule 2, continued under the Public Records Act 2023, section 42(2).archivist see section 346A(4).disclosed document see section 346A(4).given to, in relation to an inquiry public record, includes made available for inspection by.inquiry section 346A(4).inquiry public record means either of the following whether or not it is also a disclosed document—

a document relating to the inquiry;

a document, to the extent it relates to the inquiry, created by the archivist or the commission for the purpose of helping a person access a document mentioned in paragraph (a).

in relation to the period before 9 November 2013—the restricted access period for the inquiry public record under or purportedly under the repealed Public Records Act 2002, that is declared under subsection (3) to have validly been applied to the record, including a period as changed under that Act; or

otherwise—the new restricted access period for the inquiry public record applied under subsection (4) or that period as changed under—

subsection (5); or

the repealed Public Records Act 2002, section 19; or

the Public Records Act 2023, section 32.