A WA parliamentary question on notice from 2009 requests data on Freedom of Information (FOI) applications processed by the Minister for Child Protection's office and the Department for Child Protection, including processing times, reasons for delays, rejections, and appeals.

AnsweredQoN 616Legislative Council
Asked
31 March 2009
Portfolio
Child Protection

QuestionView source ↗

For each Department and Agency within the Minister’s portfolio, including the Ministerial office, will the Minister provide the following information for the period, 23 September 2008 to date, -
(1) How many Freedom of Information (FOI) applications have been received?
(2) What is the average time taken to process a FOI application?
(3) What is the reason given for each FOI application exceeding the average time for processing?
(4) How many FOI applications have been rejected by the Departments or Agencies within your portfolio?
(5) How many of these rejections have been successfully appealed?
(6) How many of these rejections are pending a decision of the FOI Commissioner?
(7) What were the reasons given by the Departments and Agencies for rejecting each of the FOI applications?
(8) What were the reasons given by the FOI Commissioner for upholding each of the appeals?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered
12 May 2009
Responded by
Minister for Child Protection
Response time
42 days
Ministerial Office
(1) 8
(2) 45 calendar days
(3) Not Applicable. While there is no requirement under the Act for a reason to be given for exceeding the 'average" time for processing, the exceptional number of FOI applications from the opposition means that responses will likely be slower.
(4)-(8) It should be noted that:
· An FOI application is not "rejected" by an agency, even when an application does not comply with the requirements of s12 of the FOI Act. The agency must take reasonable steps to help the applicant to change the application so that it complies with those requirements.
Department For Child Protection
(1) 108
(2) 28 days
(3) When the volume of material required to respond to the application is greater than normal.
(4) 14
(5) 0
(6) 0
(7) All the applications were rejected in the first instance as they did not meet the requirements set out under section 12 of the
Freedom of Information Act 1992
. In every case staff of the FOI Unit contacted the applicant and provided advice as to how the applicant could tailor the ambit such that it would satisfy the requirements of
The Act
.
(8) There have been no appeals during the period in question.
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