Pro-disclosure bias in deciding access to documents
44 Pro-disclosure bias in deciding access to documents
It is the Parliament’s intention that if an access application is made to an agency or Minister for a document, the agency or Minister should decide to give access to the document unless giving access would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest.
The purpose of this part is to help the agency or Minister decide whether giving access would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest by—
setting out in schedule 3 types of information the disclosure of which the Parliament has considered would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest; and
setting out in section 49 the steps, and, in schedule 4, factors, for deciding, for other types of information, whether disclosure would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest.
Also, sections 50 and 51 set out circumstances concerning information about a child and personal healthcare information about an applicant in which the Parliament has stated its intention about what is in the best interests of the child and applicant.
However, it is the Parliament’s intention that this Act should be administered with a pro-disclosure bias and an agency or Minister may give access to a document even if this
Act provides that access to the document may be refused.
This Act’s bill:Explanatory memorandumSecond reading speech
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