OIA Response Letter
18 January 2024
George Morrison
By email only:
[FYI request #24697 email]
Dear Mr Morrison
Official Information Act #23.108 – External Communications and Stakeholder
Management Advice
1.
We refer to your request received on 9 November 2023, clarified on 29 November
2023, for information concerning communication and stakeholder management
advice provided by external advisors held by the Commerce Commission (the
Commission).
2.
Specifically, you requested:
2.1
all external communications and stakeholder management advice provided to
the Commission by Senate Communications and/or any other external
advisors, relating to Commission activity in the telecommunications and
grocery sectors; and
2.2
any internal communications relating to the advice.
3.
We have treated this as a request for information under the Official Information Act
1982 (OIA).
Background
4.
On 10 November 2023, the Commission sent an email requesting clarification
concerning the timeframe for your request.
5.
On 22 November 2023, the Commission sent a further email seeking to clarify your
request and provide assistance to enable you to receive the information you were
seeking. In that email we indicated that as your request currently stood, it was likely
that the Commission would refuse your request pursuant to section 18(f) of the OIA.
6.
On 29 November 2023, you responded clarifying that you would like the timeframe
for the request at [2] above to be for the past 24 months.
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7.
On 7 December 2023, the Commission sent an additional request for clarification
concerning the ‘internal communications relating to the advice’ you were seeking.
8.
We have not received a response to our 7 December 2023 email.
Our response
9.
We have decided to grant your request concerning advice from external advisors at
[2.1].
10.
The Commission has engaged three external advisors over the period 30 November
2021 - 29 November 2023, who have provided communications and/or stakeholder
management advice concerning the telecommunications and grocery sectors. Those
external advisors are Martin Jenkins (MJ), SenateSHJ (Senate) and The Research
Agency (TRA).
11.
The information compiled for MJ and TRA is the final versions of advice that touch on
external communications and/or stakeholder management for the
telecommunications and grocery sectors. A list of these documents is set out in
Appendix A. Please note the TRA Stakeholder Perceptions document is publicly
available and a link is provided in the appendix.
12.
The information that has been compiled for Senate relates to the Commission’s
Market Study into the grocery sector and establishing the Commission as the grocery
regulator.
13.
The Commission has previously engaged Senate SHJ to support the Commission’s
communications function when demand exceeded staff capacity during peak
volumes of work. As Senate provided expert communications advice on standard
communications activities, such as media monitoring, advice on media releases, and
media training, the nature and volume of material concerning Senate relevant to
your request is different to that of MJ or TRA.
14.
Due to the volume of information relevant to Senate, the Commission will be
providing that information within the next two weeks.
15.
Please note information will be withheld from the information concerning Senate for
the following reasons;
15.1 To protect the privacy of natural person, in accordance with section 9(2)(a) of
the OIA;
15.2 To maintain the effective conduct of public affairs through the free and frank
expression of opinions, in accordance with section 9(2)(g)(i) of the OIA; and
15.3 To maintain legal professional privilege, in accordance with section 9(2)(h) of
the OIA.
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16.
We consider that good reasons exist for withholding information and this is not
outweighed by other considerations which would make it desirable, in the public
interest, to make the information available (section 9(1) of the OIA).
17.
In relation to your request at [2.2] for any internal communications relating to the
advice, we are refusing your request pursuant to section 18(f) of the OIA. Providing
this information would require substantial research and collation.
Further information
18.
If you are not satisfied with the Commission's response to your OIA request, section
28(3) of the OIA provides you with the right to ask an Ombudsman to investigate and
review this response. However, we would welcome the opportunity to discuss any
concerns with you first.
19.
Please note the Commission will not be publishing this response to your request on
its website. The response will be publicly available on the FYI platform.
20.
Please do not hesitate to contact us at
[Commerce Commission request email] if you have any
questions about this response.
Yours sincerely
Chantellie Lye
OIA and Information Coordinator
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Appendix A
Sector
Date
Name
Agency
Groceries
23
Engagement
Martin Jenkins
February framework
2023
Groceries
March
Grocery – Draft
Martin Jenkins
2023
Narrative
Telecommunications 17 June
Telco Narrative
Martin Jenkins
2022
Workshop Agenda
Telecommunications 12 July
Telecommunications Martin Jenkins
2022
Narrative
Telecommunications August
Shaping our
Martin Jenkins
2022
narrative
presentation
Telecommunications August
Telecommunications Martin Jenkins
2022
Engagement
Strategy
Telecommunications June
AMR Stakeholder
Martin Jenkins
2023
Meeting Paper
Telecommunications July
AMR Stakeholder
Martin Jenkins
2023
Workshop
presentation –
Digital Connectivity
Telecommunications May
Commission Fieldays Martin Jenkins
2023
Stand content -
Extract
Grocery &
February
Understanding
TRA
Telecommunications 2023
Stakeholder
Perceptions
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