45 Pipitea St
PO Box 805
30 August 2024
Wellington 6140
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Mary Brown
Fax +64 4 495 7222
[FYI request #27772 email]
Website dia.govt.nz
Tēnā koe Mary,
Official Information Act 1982 request, reference OIA2425-0130
Thank you for your email of 22 July 2024 to the Ministry of Justice. On 7 August 2024, your
Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) request was partially transferred Te Tari Taiwhenua |
the Department of Internal Affairs (the Department). You requested the fol owing:
1. Why is the New Munster link on the NZ Gazette website inactive, and where can pre-
1841 Gazette entries be found?
2. Why do Gazette items only start from 1841, and where can official notices for pre-
1840 events be located?
3. Why is the year 1843 excluded from the acts enacted in New Zealand, and what is
the significance of missing years on the legal website? Which governing bodies were
active during these periods, and what are the functions of imperial acts stil in force
today?
6. Where did Charles Brown emigrate from in 1849 and 1854, and where are their
naturalization documents with reference numbers? Where can related Gazette notices
be located?
I have provided a response to each of your questions below.
Question one and two
We are unable to identify the weblink that you have referred to as the ‘New Munster link on
the Gazette website’. To al ow us to investigate this, please email the Gazette inbox at
[email address] advising which specific webpage on the Gazette website includes the
inactive link.
The New Zealand Government Gazette, later the New Zealand Gazette, was established in
July 1841, in Auckland. Prior to the formal establishment of the New Zealand Gazette
publication, several notices were published in 1840 in other publications, including the New
Zealand Advertiser and Bay of Islands Gazette and Gazette Extraordinary. No formal Gazette
notices exist prior to 1840.
You may wish to enquire with Archives New Zealand about any archival records that exist
from the pre-1840 period a
t www.archives.govt.nz/about-us/services-we-offer/ask-an-
archivist. There was no central government prior to 1840 but there was a British Resident in
the immediate pre-1840 period and there are archival records relating to the British
Resident.
The New Zealand Gazette website currently contains notices from 2000 onwards. Notices
published prior to 2000 can be found on the Lexis Nexis New Zealand Gazette Archive. The
Lexis Nexis Gazette Archive is not an online database but is accessible through the National
Library and some local libraries. It includes notices dated back to 1841.
Question three
We are unable to confirm why the year 1843 has been excluded from the New Zealand
Legislation website. We would suggest getting in contact with the product owner of the New
Zealand Legislation website at the Parliamentary Counsel Office. Contact details are available
here: www.legislation.govt.nz/contact.aspx.
We can confirm that the Department of Internal Affairs, known as the Colonial Secretary’s
Office, was established in 1840, therefore was an active governing body during 1843. You
can find out more information on the Department’s website: www.dia.govt.nz/About-
Internal-Affairs---Department-structure---History-of-the-Department.
Question six
The Gazette team, within the Digital Public Service, conducted a search in the Lexis Nexis
New Zealand Gazette Archive, searching for reference to Charles Brown in relation to
emigration in issues from between 1849 and 1854. While two references to Charles Brown
were identified, neither related to emigration. Therefore, this part of your request is refused
under 18(e) of the Act, as the information does not exist.
Access to the Ombudsman
You have the right, under section 28(3) of the Act, to seek an investigation and review of my
decision by the Office of the Ombudsman. The postal address of the Office of the
Ombudsman is PO Box 10152, Wel ington. Alternatively, you can phone 0800 802 602 or
e
mail [email address].
Nāku noa, nā
Jeremy Cauchi
Director, Ministerial and Monitoring
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