PO Box 14001
Christchurch 8544
New Zealand
Telephone (+64 3) 358 5029
christchurchairport.co.nz
27 June 2023
Cherry Nield
Cromwell
Email: c/-
[FYI request #22942 email]
Dear Ms Nield,
OFFICIAL INFORMATION ACT 1982 (OIA) – REQUEST FOR INFORMATION -
CHRISTCHURCH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT LIMITED (CIAL)
1.
We write further to our email of 30 May 2023, acknowledging receipt of your OIA
request of 29 May 2023 (made via the third party public platform fyi.org.nz) seeking
the following information held by CIAL:
“any correspondence on land purchases in the Tarras area since 1 Jan 2023”
(the “
Request”).
2.
For the purposes of this letter, we have assumed that your request relates to any
correspondence on land purchases
by or on behalf of Christchurch International
Airport Limited in the Tarras area since 1 January 2023.
3.
CIAL has, and will continue to, respond to requests for information where it is able.
However, CIAL may be unable to release (and the OIA permits an organisation to
withhold) requested information in certain circumstances, including where:
a.
the requested information is subject to an obligation of confidence where the
making available of the information would be likely to prejudice the supply of
similar information (and it is in the public interest that such information should
continue to be supplied) (s 9 (2)(ba)(i)); and/or
b.
the withholding of such information is necessary to enable CIAL to carry out its
commercial activities without prejudice or disadvantage (s 9(2)(i) OIA),
provided in each case that such withholding is not outweighed in the circumstances
by the public interest in making the specific information available.
4.
With respect to your Request, CIAL considers that both of the withholding grounds
described above apply and we do not, in this instance, consider that there is any
countervailing public interest requiring release of the requested information. CIAL is,
therefore, refusing the Request. Some further context is set out below.
5.
Land owned by CIAL in the Tarras Area is a matter of public record. However,
correspondence in relation to the purchase of any such land is confidential and
contains commercially sensitive information that has arisen out of, or has been
provided in the course of, CIAL’s evaluation, negotiation and/or entry into arms’ length
commercial transactions. As explained further below, CIAL operates in a competitive
market and it is in the public interest that CIAL can maintain the highest standards of
confidentiality and commercial sensitivity with those we engage with in such
transactions. Further, if CIAL cannot uphold the confidentiality of such information, its
supply is likely to be jeopardised and other third parties may be reluctant to engage
with CIAL in commercial transactions due to the risk of public disclosure of confidential
information.
6.
As you may be aware, CIAL is a council-controlled trading organisation that has been
specifically established to operate and manage its business as an independent
commercial undertaking for the purposes of making a profit, and to follow generally
accepted commercial practices and disciplines. CIAL is not a public body collecting
and spending public funds. It operates as a wholly commercial, standalone entity. Due
to the size and scale of those activities it is one of only three major airports in New
Zealand regulated under Part 4 of the Commerce Act.
7.
As an airport, CIAL has a further overriding obligation under the Airport Authorities
Act 1966, and reinforced by the Civil Aviation Act 2023, to act as a commercial
undertaking. It does so in a commercially competitive environment both domestically
and internationally, where its competitors are not under corresponding disclosure
requirements. The proposed Central Otago airport project (the
Project) (to which the
Purchase relates) is a complex commercial activity, acknowledged as being in
competition with the interests of other airports within New Zealand.
8.
At present CIAL is under no legal obligation to consult in relation to the Project or
otherwise publicly engage. To assist public understanding of the context of the Project
and CIAL’s decisions, CIAL has committed to respectfully engaging with the
community and proactively publishing information as it completes pieces of work
which is likely to be in the public interest to receive on its dedicated Project web-site
at
https://www.centralotagoairport.co.nz/.
9.
In addition to the above, we also note that the information you have requested also
contains correspondence between CIAL and its lawyers which is covered by legal
privilege (and which CIAL is entitled to withhold under section 9(2)(h) of the OIA).
10.
We trust you understand the reasons for our decision to refuse your Request. If you
require any further information or we have in some way misinterpreted your Request,
please let us know.
11.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of the
decisions contained in this letter. Information about how to contact the Ombudsman
or make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone
0800 802 602.
Yours sincerely
CIAL LEGAL TEAM
Email: [Christchurch International Airport Limited request email]
