Tēnā koe Jo,

I acknowledge receipt of your Official Information Act (OIA) request below, received by New Zealand Police on 25 January 2022.

Your request is being actioned pursuant to the OIA. You can expect a response to your request on or before 22 February 2022.

Kind regards, Dylan
Ministerial Services PNHQ

-----Original Message-----
From: Jo <[FOI #18317 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 25 January 2022 11:11 PM
To: Ministerial Services <[email address]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Official Information request - Social Media Audits

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.

Dear New Zealand Police,

Overseas (particularly prevalent in the UK) there are a significant number of Social Media ‘Auditors’. These individuals attend Police Stations and exercise their legal right to film in public.

Auditors are regularly approached by Police and are often arrested/detained/questioned unlawfully. ‘Auditors’ are well versed in their legal rights. They are often approached by Police Staff and asked to provide their details. When the ‘Auditors’ decline to provide their details, they are often arrested for failing to provide details even though there is no legal obligation (under those circumstances) to provide them.

The videos are uploaded to Social Media (especially YouTube) and foster significant negative feedback concerning Police. The ‘Auditors’ often engage in legal proceedings. Police often settle (for significant sums) out of court. Yet the interactions continue and Police fail time and time again to respect the rights and freedoms of the ‘Auditors’ and labour under the false illusion that members of the public are not allowed to film Police Premises.

This recently prompted a memo from National Police Chiefs Council (UK) to all Police Staff to inform them of the practice and remind Police to use their powers appropriately.

I am writing to you today to request any such internal memo in relation to ‘Auditing’ in New Zealand. The practice is starting to gain traction here, with the IPCA upholding some complaints by ‘Auditors’ in relation to unlawful detention. One recent audit involved Inspector Ross Grantham [incorrectly] advising an ‘Auditor’ that it was illegal to film outside a Police Station.

Sometimes, the ‘Audits’ are referred to as P.I.P.P tests (Photography in Public Places).

Police should be aware of the basic rights of individuals to film in public and refuse to engage with (or provide personal details) Police. Unlawful questioning / detention / arrest shall not be tolerated by members of the public who are engaging in every day lawful activities even if they choose to conduct those activities outside of Police Stations.

Yours faithfully,

Jo

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===============================================================
WARNING
The information contained in this email message is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this message or any of its contents.
Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in error, please email or telephone the sender immediately

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Tçnâ koe JO

 

I refer to your request of 25 January 2022 for the following information:

 

Overseas (particularly prevalent in the UK) there are a significant number
of Social Media ‘Auditors’. These individuals attend Police Stations and
exercise their legal right to film in public. Auditors are regularly
approached by Police and are often arrested/detained/questioned
unlawfully. ‘Auditors’ are well versed in their legal rights. They are
often approached by Police Staff and asked to provide their details. When
the ‘Auditors’ decline to provide their details, they are often arrested
for failing to provide details even though there is no legal obligation
(under those circumstances) to provide them.

The videos are uploaded to Social Media (especially YouTube) and foster
significant negative feedback concerning Police. The ‘Auditors’ often
engage in legal proceedings. Police often settle (for significant sums)
out of court. Yet the interactions continue and Police fail time and time
again to respect the rights and freedoms of the ‘Auditors’ and labour
under the false illusion that members of the public are not allowed to
film Police Premises.

This recently prompted a memo from National Police Chiefs Council (UK) to
all Police Staff to inform them of the practice and remind Police to use
their powers appropriately.

I am writing to you today to request any such internal memo in relation to
‘Auditing’ in New Zealand. The practice is starting to gain traction here,
with the IPCA upholding some complaints by ‘Auditors’ in relation to
unlawful detention. One recent audit involved Inspector Ross Grantham
[incorrectly] advising an ‘Auditor’ that it was illegal to film outside a
Police Station.

Sometimes, the ‘Audits’ are referred to as P.I.P.P tests (Photography in
Public Places).

Police should be aware of the basic rights of individuals to film in
public and refuse to engage with (or provide personal details) Police.
Unlawful questioning / detention / arrest shall not be tolerated by
members of the public who are engaging in every day lawful activities even
if they choose to conduct those activities outside of Police Stations.

 

Unfortunately we will not be able to meet the due date of 22 February
2022.

 

I can confirm that your request has been drafted and is currently
progressing through our internal consultation process.

Although I am unable to confirm a release date at this stage, in normal
circumstances this process can take up to eight/five working days.

Please accept our apologies for the delay in providing you with a response
to your query. We are endeavouring to provide this to you as soon as
possible.

 

Kind regards

 

Catherine

Advisor: Ministerial Services

Police National Headquarters

 

 

===============================================================

WARNING

The information contained in this email message is intended for the
addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be
subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which
creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you
are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this
message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this
message or any of its contents.

Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect
those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in
error, please email or telephone the sender immediately

Tēnā koe Jo                                       

Please find attached the response to your Official Information Act
request, received by New Zealand Police on 25 January 2022.

Please accept our apologies for the delay in providing you with this
response.

Ngā mihi,

 

Penni

Penni Davenport | Senior Advisor

Ministerial Services | Policy & Partnerships | PNHQ

 

 

 

 

 

===============================================================

WARNING

The information contained in this email message is intended for the
addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be
subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which
creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you
are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this
message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this
message or any of its contents.

Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect
those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in
error, please email or telephone the sender immediately