Access to Facebooks takedown portal
Mark Wong made this Official Information request to Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Response to this request is long overdue. By law Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet should have responded by now (details and exceptions). The requester can complain to the Ombudsman.
From: Mark Wong
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
Has the government, any division of the government, any member of the government, or any organisation acting on behalf of the government, ever had partner access to Facebook’s takedown portal previously found (since removed) at https://facebook.com/xtakedowns/login?
Yours faithfully,
Mark Wong
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Tēnā koe
Thank you for emailing the Department of the Prime Minister and
Cabinet (DPMC), including the National Emergency Management
Agency (NEMA).
Please note, DPMC is not able to respond to emails that are
outside its purview. If the subject of your email does not relate to the
work of DPMC, we will forward your email to the appropriate Minister
or agency who will respond to you directly. To find out more about the
functions of DPMC please view our website - [1]https://dpmc.govt.nz/
If your correspondence is intended for the Prime Minister please email her
office at - [2][email address]. Contact information for other
Members of Parliament can be found at
- [3]https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involve...
If you are writing about an issue relating to COVID-19, we encourage you
to first refer to the [4]COVID-19 website. Here’s a list of links that you
may find helpful:
o [5]Current Alert Level
o [6]Latest Government COVID-19 information
o [7]Jobs, training and financial support
o [8]Travel and the border
o [9]Mental wellbeing, accessing health care and violence protection
o [10]Information for businesses
o [11]Proactive release of Government Response documents
o [12]Managed Isolation and Quarantine
If you are showing symptoms of COVID-19, please call your local GP or
contact the Healthline team on 0800 358 5453
Common Questions:
* Official Information Act (OIA) Requests will be formally acknowledged
during office hours and actioned accordingly. For more information
about the statutory OIA timeframes please see
- [13]http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/.
* For Job opportunities within DPMC please see
- [14]https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt.nz.... Please use
this website to apply for vacancies, unfortunately resumes received
through other avenues will not be considered.
* New Zealand Visas and requests for asylum are managed by Immigration
New Zealand. Please see - [15]https://www.immigration.govt.nz/.
We hope one of the above links helps answer your question.
We appreciate your patience at this time. Thanks again and please take
care.
Link: [16]File-List
Link: [17]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [18]themeData
Link: [19]colorSchemeMapping
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From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[IN-CONFIDENCE]
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA)
received on 2 November 2022, copied below.
We will respond to your request within the statutory timeframes set out in
the Act. If we are unable to meet these timeframes we will notify you.
Please note, due to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's
(DPMC) involvement in the government’s response to COVID-19, our
timeliness to respond to requests may be impacted. If any additional
factors come to light which are relevant to your request, please do not
hesitate to contact us so that these can be taken into account.
Your request will be managed by the Ministerial Services Team within DPMC.
If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us at
[1][DPMC request email].
DPMC may publish the response to your OIA request. If we publish the
response your personal information, including your name and contact
details, will be removed.
Ngâ mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial and Business Services
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [2][DPMC request email]
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
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From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora koe,
Please see the attached letter regarding your recent OIA request.
Ngā mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [1][DPMC request email]
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
Link: [2]File-List
Link: [3]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [4]themeData
Link: [5]colorSchemeMapping
show quoted sections
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
References
Visible links
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2. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
3. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
4. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
5. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
6. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
7. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
8. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
9. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
From: OIA
Tçnâ koe Mark,
Thank you for your OIA request which was transferred from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to the Department of Internal Affairs on 10 November 2022
The Department will provide its response to your request as soon as practicable and within twenty working days. The 20th working day is 8 December 2022
Please note that in cases where the Department’s response provides information that is identified to be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the Department of Internal Affairs website. If the Department publishes its response to your OIA request, all personal information, including your name and contact details, will be removed.
Nâku, nâ
Michelle Reed (she/her)
Kaitohutohu Ârahi, te Ture Pârongo Ôkawa | Lead Advisor Official Correspondence
Te Urûngi | Organisational Strategy & Performance
Level 6, 45 Pipitea St | PO Box 805, Wellington 6140, New Zealand | www.dia.govt.nz
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From: Royden Raka
Kia ora Mark,
The Department of Internal Affairs (Department) is currently working on
your Official Information Act (OIA) requests which was transferred to us
by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC). You request is
regarding Fakebook’s takedown portal and whether the government, or any
organisation acting on behalf of the government has had access to this
portal.
We are processing your requests and wish to write to you about your
eligibility to make a request under the OIA. Under section 12 of the OIA,
to be eligible to request information under the OIA, you must be:
o a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident; or
o a person in New Zealand.
In that context, we would appreciate if you could confirm your eligibility
under the OIA by providing a copy of a New Zealand identity document (such
as a passport or driver’s licence) or by providing evidence that you are a
person in New Zealand. To safeguard your privacy, this evidence should be
provided to the Department at [1][email address]
We would be grateful if you could confirm your eligibility under the OIA
by Friday 18 November 2022.
Ngâ mihi
Royden Raka | Business Advisor
Regulatory Services
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 462 0129 | [2]www.dia.govt.nz
[3]logo
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
What is acceptable as proof I am a person in New Zealand?
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
Why is my eligibility being challenged? I have made many OIA requests in the past with my eligibility never being questioned.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
Jason Brown left an annotation ()
Hi Mark,
just had a look at the response from the DPMC which includes your original question* as containing a long link, probably copied from your email.
In fact the portal is still working, at the address you mentioned, https://www.facebook.com/xtakedowns/login
However the DPMC may have chosen to interpret your request as it received it, which is a unique identifier linked to a single, unique email session, which of course no longer works, rather than your original short link above.
You may want to consider resubmitting your request with the original URL. If they still block you I am happy to submit on your behalf as a NZ resident.
* original question as it appears in DPMC response:
“Has the government, any division of the government, any member of
the government, or any organisation acting on behalf of the government,
ever had partner access to Facebook’s takedown portal previously found
(since removed) at
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
acebook.com%2Fxtakedowns%2Flogin&data=05%7C01%7Cinformati
on%40dpmc.govt.nz%7C02ba71655d9d4750b93808dabc612666%7C
eea6053309ef4b7a94060f38551cc613%7C0%7C0%7C638029423135
449489%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiL
CJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C2000%7C
%7C%7C&sdata=OOkXZVNeQIt7g5%2FnVt%2BQMNYb6Af56QLg3S
OuCoEiJk8%3D&reserved=0?
J. Beddek left an annotation ()
Jason I believe the link that was originally sent was correct. However, DMPC's email filtering system redirected the link through Safe Links:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-nz/micros...
Re-sending the request will likely result in a similar link on DMPC's end.
From: Royden Raka
Kia ora Mark,
Thank you for your email below. The Department may seek evidence of a person's eligibility to make a request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA).
In the interests of progressing your OIA request in this case, we will not now require you to provide confirmation of your eligibility. We will continue to process your request under the OIA.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka
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From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
Thank you for processing my request. However, I did not get a satisfactory answer in regards to the reasoning behind the request.
It is in the publics interest to know if the ministry is attempting to subvert the OIA by putting up road blocks such as requesting evidence of eligibility without good cause.
For that reason I am now requesting all government correspondence regarding my request for information, the decision to challenge my eligibility, as well as the specific reason behind it.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: RSOC
Kia ora Mark,
Please find attached a letter in response to your OIA request from the
Department of Internal Affairs.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka | Business Advisor
Regulatory Services
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 462 0129 | [1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]logo
References
Visible links
1. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
Thanks for this. Can you please forward the following request to all government departments/ministries, or advise on the best way to get this information on all departments:
To whom it may concern,
Please confirm if your department/ministry had/has access to Facebooks takedown portal.
Please provide the guidelines for flagging/censoring/down ranking content posted by New Zealanders, people residing in New Zealand, and media with content relating to New Zealand & New Zealanders.
Please provide the number of Facebook posts your department has accessed through the portal, or at least an indication of the scope of interference.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: Royden Raka
Kia ora Mark,
Thank you for your request to the Department of Internal Affairs (Department) which is included in this email.
This email is to confirm receipt and advise that the Department will manage your request under the Privacy Act 2020, and will respond by no later than 17 January 2023.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka
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From: RSOC
Kia ora Mark,
The Department of Internal Affairs (Department) refers to your Official
Information Act 1982 (OIA) request for parts two and three (see your email
below), noting we have previously responded to you regarding the
Department’s access to the Facebook takedown portal. We will provide a
response to your request as soon as practicable and within twenty working
days. The 20^th working day is 19 January 2023.
We now have a policy that we will seek evidence of eligibility for all new
OIA requests concerning Digital Safety. Under section 12 of the OIA, to be
eligible to request information under the OIA, you must be:
o a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident; or
o a person in New Zealand.
In that context, we would appreciate if you could confirm your eligibility
under the OIA by providing a copy of a New Zealand identity document (such
as a passport or driver’s licence) or by providing evidence that you are a
person in New Zealand (such as a utility bill that shows your current
name).
To safeguard your privacy, this evidence should be provided to the
Department at [1][email address]. We would be grateful if you
could confirm your eligibility under the OIA by Tuesday 13 December 2022.
Please note that if you do not provide evidence of eligibility, we will be
unable to respond to your OIA request.
Lastly, you have asked if we can forward your request to all government
departments/ministries, or advise on the best way to get your request to
all departments. I have provided below a list of several government
departments which you may forward your request onto. Please note, this
does not include all government departments/agencies and therefore, I have
included a link to the Public Service Commission website which provides a
list of all central government organisations and a link to their websites
which will note how to send your OIA requests: [2]Central government
organisations - Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission
o Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC):
[3][email address]
o Department of Corrections: [4][email address]
o Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC):
[5][DPMC request email]
o Government Communications Security Bureau: [6][email address]
o Inland Revenue: [7][email address]
o Ministry for Primary Industries:
[8][email address]
o Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment:
[9][email address]
o Ministry of Defence: [10][email address]
o Ministry of Education: [11][email address]
o Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade: [12][email address]
o Ministry of Justice: [13][email address]
o Ministry of Social Development: [14][email address]
o New Zealand Police: [15][email address]
o NZ Security Intelligence Service: [16][email address]
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka | Business Advisor
Regulatory Services
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 462 0129 | [17]www.dia.govt.nz
[18]logo
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From: Mark Wong
Dear RSOC,
The email addresses you have sent have all been removed. I assume this happens automatically.
Perhaps you can just send this information directly to me via email?
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: Mark Wong
Dear RSOC,
From the ombudsman’s guidelines on eligibility:
"Agencies are entitled to make reasonable enquiries to satisfy themselves that a requester is eligible to make a request under the OIA. However, the eligibility requirement is not about imposing unnecessary barriers to legitimate requests. Agencies should only query eligibility if there is a genuine need to do so, and they should be mindful of their obligation to provide reasonable assistance to requesters."
What is the genuine need to challenge the eligibility of requests made on this subject matter, as opposed to other matters?
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: RSOC
Kia ora Mark,
Thank you for your email, and happy to forward this email directly to you.
You can provide your email address directly to me at [email address].
Ngâ mihi
Royden Raka
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From: Mark Wong
Dear RSOC,
The email address is hidden I can’t see it.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: RSOC
Kia ora Mark,
Thank you for your email. I am working with our IT team to determine whether this is an issue on our end and how can we resolve this moving forward.
In the interim, if you can send can contact me on another email address, I should be able to you send you my work email address and contacts for other agencies to send your OIA request.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka
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From: Royden Raka
Kia ora Mark,
I have reached out with our IT team and unfortunately this is an issue which we cannot resolve. This maybe a function within the FYI.org.nz site which removes the email addresses from the body.
As per below, to safeguard your privacy you can provide evidence of your eligibility directly to this email address.
We would be grateful if you could confirm your eligibility under the OIA by Wednesday 21 December 2022. Please note, if you do not provide evidence of eligibility, we will be unable to respond to your OIA request.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka
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From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
Directly to what email address? This is starting to get ridiculous.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
Chris left an annotation ()
You need to go to the page on FYI for Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and scroll to the bottom and click View email address.
Then you need to send an email to that address from your own email. Getting frustrated at someone else for a problem that they can't solve for you is unhelpful. Only you can resolve the situation.
Mark Wong left an annotation ()
Chris,
My OIA was redirected from the PM’s office so it doesn’t make sense to me to send an email there.
What makes sense to me is that Mr Raka would make an effort to be helpful instead of sending email addresses I can’t read or referring to “this email”
From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
Can you please give instructions that guide me to where I can find the correct email address?
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: Royden Raka
Hi Mark,
If you can respond to this email by Wednesday 21 December 2022, providing evidence of your eligibility under the OIA that would be great.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka
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From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
I need an actual email address. I can’t send an emails to “this email address”.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
ASE left an annotation ()
Time to get the Ombudsman's office to sort this out on your behalf. DIA is playing games.
ASE left an annotation ()
Am I the only one who noticed, in the 16 Nov 2022 email *from* The Department of Internal Affairs, they refer to “Fakebook’s” takedown portal?
Mark Wong left an annotation ()
ASE I already have an active complaint regarding these stall tactics.
From: Royden Raka
Hi Mark,
Thank you for your email.
If you can please send evidence of your eligibility to 'Royden[dot]Raka@dia[dot]govt[dot]nz' noting the references to '[dot]' will need to be replaced with '.' when you provide your evidence of your eligibility under the OIA. Unfortunately due to the rules in place for the FYI site regarding email addresses, this is the only way to work around this. Therefore, it will be great if you can also provide an 'alternative' or 'personal' email address so we can also provide you with contacts to other agencies which you can forward your OIA request to.
It would be great to receive this information as soon possible so we can progress your request.
Ngâ mihi
Royden Raka
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From: Mark Wong
Dear Royden Raka,
I will not at this point be revealing my full identity to you for multiple reasons.
1. You have not provided a genuine reason for challenging my eligibility.
2. You have not made this request at the earliest available opportunity.
3. I believe any reasonable person reading this exchange will agree that you have used disingenuous tactics to delay the release of the information I have requested.
4. I believe this is an attempt to intimidate me.
5. I believe that my request will reveal targeting of citizens for censorship and that revealing my identity will cause me to become a target for censorship.
6. I have complained to the Ombudsman regarding all of the above and am awaiting the outcome.
Here is a quote from the Ombudsman's guide to OIA requests made online:
"Agencies are entitled to make reasonable enquiries to satisfy themselves that a requester is eligible to make a request under the OIA. However, the eligibility requirement is not about imposing unnecessary barriers to legitimate requests. Agencies should only query eligibility if there is a genuine need to do so, and they should be mindful of their obligation to provide reasonable assistance to requesters. Time taken to confirm eligibility may mean less time is available for processing a request that is subsequently confirmed to be valid. With that in mind, agencies should endeavour to resolve any doubts about a requester’s eligibility as soon as possible."
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
From: RSOC
Dear Mark
Please find attached our response to your OIA request dated 1 December
2022.
In addition, we are currently working on your request under the Privacy
Act in which you requested all government correspondence regarding your
original request for information dated 10 November 2022 about access to
Facebook’s take down portal, the decision to challenge your eligibility,
as well as the specific reason behind it. We would appreciate being able
to send to you our Privacy Act response via an email address which is not
an FYI address. Do you have an alternative email address that is
available?
Kind regards
Rachel Chrystall | Principal Advisor Official Correspondence (Acting)
Regulatory Strategy and Performance
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington
Direct Dial: +64 4 816 4041 | Extn: 6041 | [mobile number]
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
References
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1. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
From: RSOC
Kia ora Mark,
Please find a letter regarding your Privacy Act 2020 request from the
Department of Internal Affairs.
Ngā mihi
Royden Raka | Business Advisor
Regulatory Services
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 462 0129 | [1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]logo
References
Visible links
1. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
From: Rachel Chrystall
Dear Mark
We have not received a response to our email below about our release of
your private information in response to your Privacy Act request.
We wish to advise that our response to your Privacy Act request is almost
ready. Please note that we will send you our Privacy Act response when you
provide an appropriate email address for release of our material or when
you give us your consent for your personal information to be published on
FYI. We would be grateful to hear back from you as soon as possible and
preferably by no later than 10am tomorrow so we can progress this matter
for you.
Kind regards
Rachel Chrystall
From: RSOC
Sent: Tuesday, 17 January 2023 8:13 am
To: Mark Wong <[FOI #21009 email]>
Subject: Response to your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request
dated 1 December 2022 (ref OIA2223-0450)
Dear Mark
Please find attached our response to your OIA request dated 1 December
2022.
In addition, we are currently working on your request under the Privacy
Act in which you requested all government correspondence regarding your
original request for information dated 10 November 2022 about access to
Facebook’s take down portal, the decision to challenge your eligibility,
as well as the specific reason behind it. We would appreciate being able
to send to you our Privacy Act response via an email address which is not
an FYI address. Do you have an alternative email address that is
available?
Kind regards
Rachel Chrystall | Principal Advisor Official Correspondence (Acting)
Regulatory Strategy and Performance
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington
Direct Dial: +64 4 816 4041 | Extn: 6041 | [mobile number]
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
References
Visible links
1. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
From: Mark Wong
Dear Rachel Chrystall,
I do not consent to the publishing of my private information nor do I wish to provide an email address that I believe will be used to formally identify me and make me a target for government censorship.
I have an active complaint with the ombudsman & I will wait for this matter to be resolved via that channel.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
Al left an annotation ()
Firstly, DIA aren't responsible for doing the work of people's OIA requests to other govt agencies - so providing a link to help you that could be googled - is the best they can do (I see why they didn't transfer it to anyone as they wouldn't know who has access so wouldn't know who to transfer it to). There are other OIAs that show DIA seem to be the only ones with access.
Secondly, whenever it comes to this digital harms team at DIA they seem to ALWAYS ask for picture ID from anyone who makes a OIA request - even Cam Slater had to provide it which I think isn't in the spirit of the Act as a previous commenter noted.....
From: Rachel Chrystall
Dear Mark
The Department is currently reviewing the way it handled your request for
information dated 1 December 2022 as outlined below:
o Please confirm if DIA had/has access to Facebook’s takedown portal;
• Please provide the guidelines for flagging/censoring/down ranking
content posted by New Zealanders, people residing in New Zealand, and
media with content relating to New Zealand and New Zealanders; and
• Please provide the number of Facebook posts DIA has accessed through
the portal, or at least an indication of the scope of interference.
We wanted to reach out to you to see if you would be amenable to providing
evidence to Leanne Stewart of the Office of the Ombudsman showing that you
are a New Zealand citizen, or a permanent resident of New Zealand, or a
person who is in New Zealand. In that context, this would involve
providing a copy of a New Zealand identity document (such as a passport or
driver’s licence) or providing evidence that you are a person in New
Zealand (such as a utility bill that shows your current name). If you were
amenable to do so, the Ombudsman could confirm whether you are eligible to
make a request under the Official Information Act 1982. If you are indeed
eligible, we would then be able to reply to your request.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards
Rachel Chrystall |Principal Advisor Ministerial and Official
Correspondence
Toi Hiranga | Regulation & Policy
Department of Internal Affairs | Te Tari Taiwhenua
Direct Dial: +64 4 816 4041 | Extn: 6041 | [mobile number] Pipitea Street, PO Box 6011, Wellington 6140
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
References
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1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: Mark Wong
Dear Rachel Chrystall,
If Leanne emails me I would be happy to discuss sending her my ID.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Wong
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence
Offensive? Unsuitable?
Requests for personal information and vexatious requests are not considered valid requests for Official Information (read more).
If you believe this request is not suitable, you can report it for attention by the site administrators
Report this requestAct on what you've learnt
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Mark Hanna left an annotation ()
The Ombudsman has published a guideline on requests received online, which has this to say on determining eligibility:
"Agencies are entitled to make reasonable enquiries to satisfy themselves that a requester is eligible to make a request under the OIA. However, the eligibility requirement is not about imposing unnecessary barriers to legitimate requests. Agencies should only query eligibility if there is a genuine need to do so, and they should be mindful of their obligation to provide reasonable assistance to requesters."
https://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/reso...
Establishing eligibility is not a required step in responding to a request made under the OIA. The vast majority of requests for official information receive a response without challenging the requester's eligibility.
You may want to ask why, in this case, the agency considers there is a genuine need to query your eligibility under the OIA. There is nothing stopping them from proceeding with your request without establishing whether or not your are eligible to make it.
Link to this