22 July 2022
45 Pipitea Street, Thorndon, Wellington 6011
PO Box 805, Wellington 6140
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Will Inglis
Email [email address]
[FYI request #19754 email]
Website www.dia.govt.nz
Tēnā koe Will
Your Official Information Act 1982 request, reference OIA 21/22-0865
Thank you for your email of 27 June 2022 requesting the following under the Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act):
“…any reports or documents (including aides-memoires, memos, and emails) sent
to Ministers and their offices (including to Private Secretaries in the past 5 years
regarding the Charities Act, particularly information regarding the provision for
advancement of religion, and/or its application to organisations like Sanitarium
and other businesses owned by religious organisations.”
Your request, as it is currently framed, cannot be fulfilled by the Department of Internal
Affairs (the Department) without conducting substantial research that will take a
considerable amount of time to complete. We contacted you on 5 and 11 July to attempt to
refine your request. To date, we have not received a response.
Therefore, your request is refused under section 18(f) of the Act, on the grounds that the
information cannot be made available without substantial research.
The Department has made 20 briefing papers relating to the policy work to modernise the
Charities Act 2005 publicly available. You can find this information at
www.dia.govt.nz/charitiesact#Release.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision.
Information about how to make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz
or Freephone 0800 802 602.
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We intend to publish our response to your request on www.dia.govt.nz. This letter, with
your personal details removed, will be published in its entirety. Publishing responses
increases the availability of information to the public and is consistent with the Act’s
purpose of enabling more effective participation in the making and administration of laws
and policies and promoting the accountability of Ministers and officials.
Nāku noa, nā
Jan Clark
Tumuaki | Director (Acting)
Ministerial, Monitoring, and Capability Group
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