All meetings involving the PM between 1 March and 19 March 2020
Chris Johnston 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: Chris Johnston
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
Please provide a list of all meetings and conference calls involving the Prime Minister between 1 March 2020 and 31 March 2020 inclusive.
Please include the date, time, topic and the attendees (and which organisation they were from) for each event.
Where privacy of a natural person is a problem I am happy for this to be redacted - but will require the organisation and purpose of the meeting to be included. Similarly, the job title of any attending public official should be mentioned.
For clarity, I am not interested in press conferences, public appearances or one-to-one incoming/outgoing phone calls. Where a call is with a conference line bridge then this is in scope of this request. Where the other attendees on that Conference line bridge is not part of a Public Record then this is out of scope - noting that Minutes/Notes/MS Messenger session logs and similar are all Public Records.
Please let me know if you would like to Consult.
Yours faithfully,
Chris Johnston
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).
DPMC can't respond to emails that are outside its scope. If the subject of
your email doesn't relate to the work of DPMC, we may forward your email
to the appropriate Minister or agency who will respond to you directly. To
find out more about DPMC's functions please view our
website [1]https://dpmc.govt.nz/.
If your correspondence is intended for the Prime Minister please email his
office at [2][email address]. Contact information for
other Members of Parliament can be found at
[3]https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involve....
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
[4]http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/.
* For job opportunities within DPMC see
[5]https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt.nz.... Please use this
website to apply for vacancies. Resumes received through other avenues
will not be considered.
* New Zealand visas and requests for asylum are managed by Immigration
New Zealand. Please see [6]https://www.immigration.govt.nz/.
We hope one of the above links helps answer your question. Thanks again
and please take care.
Link: [7]File-List
Link: [8]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [9]themeData
Link: [10]colorSchemeMapping
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From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA)
received on 2nd December 2024, 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.
Your request will be managed by the Ministerial Services team within DPMC.
If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us at
[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.
Ngā mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [DPMC request email]
show quoted sections
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
DPMCOIA Reply OIA 2024 25 0502 Johnston Meetings and conference calls involving Jacinda Ar 4969343.1.pdf
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[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
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]
Link: [2]File-List
Link: [3]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [4]themeData
Link: [5]colorSchemeMapping
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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
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
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: Chris Johnston
Dear Information [DPMC],
Thanks for your reply and the referral to the site: https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/defaul...
This information has helped to focus the follow-up requests below. Where any information is already publicly available online then please provide the link.
Could the following please be provided for the date range 9 March 2020 to 19 March 2020 inclusive:
1) Outgoing call logs from the Prime Minister's government provided mobile and desk phones. Phone numbers can be redacted. At least the date, time, duration need to be provided. An extract from the corporate bill to Parliamentary Services might suffice but I leave it to you to decide the best source.
2) Agenda and Minutes/Actions from the following meetings - please provide what you can based on what exists (eg formal Minutes may not exist in every instance, but a follow up email by an official in the PMO may detail Actions):
- 3 March 2020 12:00 - 12:30 CEO, Chair and Head of Corporate Affairs of Air New Zealand
- 9 March 2020 11:30 -12:00 COVID-19 Update
- 9 March 2020 14:45 - 14:50 Phone Call: Newly appointed Commissioner of Police
- 10 March 2020 17:00 - 18:00 External Relations and Security Cabinet Committee
- 11 March 2020 15:15 - 15:45 Chief Executive and General Manager of Business New Zealand
- 11 March 2020 16:00 - 16:30 Council of Trade Unions
- 11 March 2020 16:30 - 17:30 Cabinet Committee on COVID-19
- 12 March 2020 22:00 - 22:45 Teleconference: Ministerial Meeting - COVID-19 Ministers
- 14 March 2020 13:00 - 14:00 Teleconference: Cabinet
- 15 March 2020 11:30 - 12:00 Phone Call: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Robertson
- 16 March 2020 12:00 - 12:30 COVID-19 Update
- 16 March 2020 13:00 - 15:00 Cabinet Meeting
- 17 March 2020 09:00 - 09:15 Phone: Ulu 0 Tokelau
- 17 March 2020 16:00 - 16:30 Meet: Prime Ministers Office Staff
- 18 March 2020 08:30 - 08:45 Fonterra CE and Chair
- 18 March 2020 09:30 - 10:15 Cabinet Social Wellbeing Committee
- 18 March 2020 10:15 - 10:30 Dr Siouxie Wiles and Dr Michelle Dickinson
- 18 March 2020 11:00 - 11:45 Local Government New Zealand
- 18 March 2020 16:30 - 17:30 Cabinet Committee on COVID-19
- 19 March 2020 16:00 - 17:00 Cabinet
3) The following meeting titles are withheld in accordance with s9(2)(f)(iv) of the Official Information Act -
- 3 March 2020 12:30 - 13:00
- 10 March 2020 15:00 - 15;30
- 18 March 2020 12:00 - 13:00
That section says: "this section applies if, and only if, the withholding of the information is necessary to (f) maintain the constitutional conventions for the time being which protect (iv) the confidentiality of advice tendered by Ministers of the Crown and officials"
Section 9(1) says "Where this section applies, good reason for withholding official information exists, for the purpose of section 5, unless, in the circumstances of the particular case, the withholding of that information is outweighed by other considerations which render it desirable, in the public interest, to make that information available."
With the passage of time, and in light of the recent Phase 1 of the Royal Commission Report in COVID-19 - could you please review whether:
- This classification was applied correctly for these meetings in the past
- Publishing the titles of these meetings is now assessed differently (i.e. the balance between confidentiality, public interest and other factors has now changed).
Even if the meeting titles continue to be withheld, can you please confirm whether the meetings relate to COVID-19 and/or the government's response?
4) All correspondence by letter or email between the PMO and the following people/organisations for the month of March 2020:
- CEO, Chair and Head of Corporate Affairs of Air New Zealand
- Fonterra CE and Chair
- Council of Trade Unions
- Commissioner of Police
- Chief Executive and General Manager of Business New Zealand
- Ulu 0 Tokelau
- Dr Siouxie Wiles or Dr Michelle Dickinson
- Local Government New Zealand
All the requests above are separate and severable - so please fulfil what you can.
Yours sincerely,
Chris Johnston
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) received on 9 December 2024, 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.
Your request will be managed by the Ministerial Services team within DPMC. If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us at [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.
Ngā mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [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.
show quoted sections
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
DPMCOIA Transfer OIA 2024 25 0521 Johnston Various information from previous administration 4971498.1.pdf
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[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
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
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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
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
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: Chris Johnston
Dear Information [DPMC],
Thanks for the response on progress and reassignment of some aspects of the request.
Good Comms.
Thanks also to those looking into this over the Christmas period.
Yours sincerely,
Chris Johnston
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
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
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
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: Chris Johnston
Dear Information [DPMC],
Thanks for your interesting reply.
As follow up questions:
1) Can you please provide documentation that shows that successive Prime Minister's Office (PMO) are regarded as separate legal entities for the purposes of the Official Information Act and/or the Public Records Act under the following scenarios:
1a) A change in the party leader of the governing party (so the Prime Minister changes);
1b) A change in the person holding the role of Prime Minister within a coalition government to the leader of another party where the parties in the governing coalition do not change;
1c) No change of Prime Minister but a new term as a result of an election where the governing party retains power with the same leader
1d) A change in Prime Minister as a result of another party or Coalition winning the election - the case in point for the OIA that forms the basis of this enquiry.
2) Can you please provide documentation that describes the requirements, policy and process of archiving or retaining documentation/Records generated by the "previous" Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in the following scenarios:
2a) A change in the party leader of the governing party (so the Prime Minister changes);
2b) A change in the person holding the role of Prime Minister within a coalition government to the leader of another party where the parties in the governing coalition do not change;
2c) No change of Prime Minister but a new term as a result of an election where the governing party retains power with the same leader
2d) A change in Prime Minister as a result of another party or Coalition winning the election - the case in point for the OIA that forms the basis of this enquiry.
3) Can you confirm via documentation or otherwise that at some point the Records of the following entities are eventually sent to the National Archives of New Zealand (and if there is any moratorium set on the time that must pass until they can be accessed by the public)?
3a) PMO
3b) Parliamentary Services
If you are unable to provide a document for any of the above I am open to you answering the question directly.
Yours sincerely,
Chris Johnston
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 that DPMC's office is closed 24 December - 5 January.
DPMC can't respond to emails that are outside its scope. If the subject of
your email doesn't relate to the work of DPMC, we may forward your email
to the appropriate Minister or agency who will respond to you directly. To
find out more about DPMC's functions please view our
website [1]https://dpmc.govt.nz/.
If your correspondence is intended for the Prime Minister please email his
office at [2][email address]. Contact information for
other Members of Parliament can be found at
[3]https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involve....
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
[4]http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/.
* For job opportunities within DPMC see
[5]https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt.nz.... Please use this
website to apply for vacancies. Resumes received through other avenues
will not be considered.
* New Zealand visas and requests for asylum are managed by Immigration
New Zealand. Please see [6]https://www.immigration.govt.nz/.
We hope one of the above links helps answer your question. Thanks again
and please take care.
Link: [7]File-List
Link: [8]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [9]themeData
Link: [10]colorSchemeMapping
show quoted sections
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) received on 23 December 2024, 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.
Your request will be managed by the Ministerial Services team within DPMC. If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us at [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.
Ngā mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [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.
show quoted sections
From: MaSS info
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Kia ora Chris
Thank you for your request made under the Official Information Act
(attached) to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet dated 9
December 2024. Your request was partially transferred to the Department of
Internal Affairs (the Department) on 20 December 2024.
The Department will provide its response to your request as soon as
practicable and within twenty working days. The due date for your request
is 11 February 2025.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Te Haumi | Enterprise Partnerships
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
References
Visible links
1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
DPMCOIA Reply OIA 2024 25 0550 Johnston Inquiry regarding specifics of handover process bet 4978668.1.pdf
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[IN-CONFIDENCE]
Kia ora,
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
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
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: MaSS info
Kia ora Chris
This email is in regard to your official information request dated 9
December 2024, to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. As you
know, the request was subsequently partially transferred to the Department
of Internal Affairs (the Department). The parts of the request transferred
to the Department are:
2) Agenda and Minutes/Actions from the following meetings - please provide
what you can based on what exists (eg formal Minutes may not exist in
every instance, but a follow up email by an official in the PMO may detail
Actions):
- 3 March 2020 12:00 - 12:30 CEO, Chair and Head of Corporate Affairs of
Air New Zealand
- 9 March 2020 11:30 -12:00 COVID-19 Update
- 9 March 2020 14:45 - 14:50 Phone Call: Newly appointed Commissioner of
Police
- 10 March 2020 17:00 - 18:00 External Relations and Security Cabinet
Committee
- 11 March 2020 15:15 - 15:45 Chief Executive and General Manager of
Business New Zealand
- 11 March 2020 16:00 - 16:30 Council of Trade Unions
- 11 March 2020 16:30 - 17:30 Cabinet Committee on COVID-19
- 12 March 2020 22:00 - 22:45 Teleconference: Ministerial Meeting -
COVID-19 Ministers
- 14 March 2020 13:00 - 14:00 Teleconference: Cabinet
- 15 March 2020 11:30 - 12:00 Phone Call: Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister Robertson
- 16 March 2020 12:00 - 12:30 COVID-19 Update
- 16 March 2020 13:00 - 15:00 Cabinet Meeting
- 17 March 2020 09:00 - 09:15 Phone: Ulu 0 Tokelau
- 17 March 2020 16:00 - 16:30 Meet: Prime Ministers Office Staff
- 18 March 2020 08:30 - 08:45 Fonterra CE and Chair
- 18 March 2020 09:30 - 10:15 Cabinet Social Wellbeing Committee
- 18 March 2020 10:15 - 10:30 Dr Siouxie Wiles and Dr Michelle Dickinson
- 18 March 2020 11:00 - 11:45 Local Government New Zealand
- 18 March 2020 16:30 - 17:30 Cabinet Committee on COVID-19
- 19 March 2020 16:00 - 17:00 Cabinet
4) All correspondence by letter or email between the PMO and the following
people/organisations for the month of March 2020:
- CEO, Chair and Head of Corporate Affairs of Air New Zealand
- Fonterra CE and Chair - Council of Trade Unions
- Commissioner of Police
- Chief Executive and General Manager of Business New Zealand
- Ulu 0 Tokelau
- Dr Siouxie Wiles or Dr Michelle Dickinson
- Local Government New Zealand
Searching the email records of former Ministers of the Crown
The Department’s Ministerial Services Group is deemed to hold the records
of former Ministers of the Crown. Although the Department is deemed to
hold the information relating to former Ministers, we do not have the
ability to perform searches on the parliamentary server (where the
electronic records are held). We commission Parliamentary Service (IT) to
run the required searches on our behalf.
The search engine used by Parliamentary Service works by using keywords to
search the email accounts of former Prime Ministers/Ministers as well as
any information saved by the former Prime Minister’s staff to the office
shared drive. Each keyword used involves a separate search, and depending
on the amount of information being searched through, this can take a
significant amount of time.
Additionally, if the keyword used is not specific enough, a large amount
of irrelevant information could be found. Processing and reviewing large
amounts of electronic documents is an administratively difficult task. For
example, using the keyword “agenda”, “minutes”, or “COVID” will return all
emails/documents that contain those words sent or received by the former
Prime Minister/Minister. The time period of March 2020 saw an
unprecedented volume of correspondence being sent and received by all
Ministers at the time including the former Prime Minister.
Physical records
By way of background, in the lead up to the Rt Hon Dame Jacinda Ardern’s
resignation, the Department provided resource to catalogue and archive the
information relevant to her role as Prime Minister. This was a unique
circumstance and has not occurred for all former Prime Ministers. However,
it does mean we are able to access physical documents that may contain
information relevant to your request.
Refinement of original request
Due to the complexity and scale of your request, a search of electronic
records would present an administratively difficult task and would likely
result in a refusal of your request under section 18(f) of the Act. As
your request would present an administratively difficult process,
involving 10+ separate keyword searches for electronic records, we propose
that a search of the former Prime Minister’s archived physical records
would be a manageable option.
If the approach of narrowing your request to physical records is
acceptable, could you please confirm your acceptance by return email by 27
January 2025.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Te Haumi | Enterprise Partnerships
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
References
Visible links
1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: MaSS info
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DPMCOIA Reply OIA 2024 25 0550 Johnston Inquiry regarding specifics of handover process bet 4978668.1.pdf
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Kia ora Chris
Thank you for your request made under the Official Information Act
(attached) to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet dated 23
December 2024. Your request was partially transferred to the Department of
Internal Affairs (the Department) on 16 January 2025.
The Department will provide its response to your request as soon as
practicable and within twenty working days. The due date for your request
is 14 February 2025.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Te Haumi | Enterprise Partnerships
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
References
Visible links
1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: MaSS info
Kia ora Chris
I am writing to you today following our email (below) dated 21 January
2025 regarding your official information request of 9 December 2024.
We have concluded our search of the former Prime Minister’s physical
records and are currently reviewing and consulting on information that is
potentially within scope of your request.
Upon further consideration of your request, we have determined that a
search of the former Prime Minister’s electronic records may be possible
in a refined form. In the table below, we propose a resolution to
undertake a search of the Former Prime Ministers records and keywords we
will use and other parameters in our searches. This refinement of your
request is being suggested to enable the Department to respond to part 4)
of your request.
As noted in our email below, due to the complexity and scale of your
request, a search for electronic documents would require substantial
collation and research. What we are proposing is as follows:
o Revise the scope of part 2) of your request to only physical
documents. More details on these documents can be found in our email
(below); and
o Revise the scope of part 4) of your request to our proposed search
parameters below and any physical documents.
If our proposed refinement still generates a large volume of information
returned from our search of electronic records, we may refuse that part of
your request under s 18(f) of the OIA as it would require substantial
collation and research to review, process, and consult on the returned
documents.
For more information on the searches conducted for the electronic records
relating to former Ministers of the Crown please refer to our email
(below) dated 21 January 2025. If any of the above is unclear, please feel
free to contact us and we will endeavour to help.
If our proposed refinement of your request is acceptable, or if you would
like to discuss this further, please confirm by 7 February 2025 by return
email. If we do not hear from you by this date, we may refuse part 4) of
your request under s 18(f) of the OIA.
Please note, as our proposed refinement still involves 12 keyword
searches, we will likely have to stagger these searches and respond to
this part of your request in batches.
Your request for “All Our proposed
correspondence by refinement.
letter or email
between the PMO and Note: In all
the following instances we will
people/organisations use the date
for the month of range 1/03/2020
March 2020” to 31 March 2020
CEO, Chair and Head Names:
of Corporate Affairs
of Air New Zealand o Greg Foran
(CEO Air NZ,
March 2020)
o Therese Walsh
(Chair Air
NZ, March
2020)
Note: We could
not find any name
of the “Head of
Corporate Affairs
Air NZ” for 2020.
Fonterra CE and Chair Names:
o Miles Hurrell
(CEO
Fonterra,
March 2020)
o Peter McBride
(Chair
Fonterra,
March 2020)
Commissioner of Names:
Police
o Mike Bush
(Commissioner
of Police,
March 2020)
Council of Trade Names:
Unions
o Richard
Wagstaff
(President
NZCTU, March
2020)
Business New Zealand Names:
o Kirk Hope
(CEO Business
NZ, March
2020)
Ulu O Tokelau Names:
o Kelihiano
Kalolo (Ulu O
Tokelau,
12/03/2019 to
9/03/2020)
o Fofo Tuisano
(Ulu O
Tokelau,
9/03/2020 to
8/03/2021)
Dr Siouxie Wiles and No change
Dr Michelle Dickinson
Local Government New Names:
Zealand
o Malcolm
Alexander
(CEO LGNZ,
March 2020)
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Te Haumi | Enterprise Partnerships
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
From: MaSS info <[email address]>
Sent: Tuesday, 21 January 2025 2:33 pm
To: [FOI #29412 email]
Subject: OIA 2425-0618
Kia ora Chris
This email is in regard to your official information request dated 9
December 2024, to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. As you
know, the request was subsequently partially transferred to the Department
of Internal Affairs (the Department). The parts of the request transferred
to the Department are:
2) Agenda and Minutes/Actions from the following meetings - please provide
what you can based on what exists (eg formal Minutes may not exist in
every instance, but a follow up email by an official in the PMO may detail
Actions):
- 3 March 2020 12:00 - 12:30 CEO, Chair and Head of Corporate Affairs of
Air New Zealand
- 9 March 2020 11:30 -12:00 COVID-19 Update
- 9 March 2020 14:45 - 14:50 Phone Call: Newly appointed Commissioner of
Police
- 10 March 2020 17:00 - 18:00 External Relations and Security Cabinet
Committee
- 11 March 2020 15:15 - 15:45 Chief Executive and General Manager of
Business New Zealand
- 11 March 2020 16:00 - 16:30 Council of Trade Unions
- 11 March 2020 16:30 - 17:30 Cabinet Committee on COVID-19
- 12 March 2020 22:00 - 22:45 Teleconference: Ministerial Meeting -
COVID-19 Ministers
- 14 March 2020 13:00 - 14:00 Teleconference: Cabinet
- 15 March 2020 11:30 - 12:00 Phone Call: Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister Robertson
- 16 March 2020 12:00 - 12:30 COVID-19 Update
- 16 March 2020 13:00 - 15:00 Cabinet Meeting
- 17 March 2020 09:00 - 09:15 Phone: Ulu 0 Tokelau
- 17 March 2020 16:00 - 16:30 Meet: Prime Ministers Office Staff
- 18 March 2020 08:30 - 08:45 Fonterra CE and Chair
- 18 March 2020 09:30 - 10:15 Cabinet Social Wellbeing Committee
- 18 March 2020 10:15 - 10:30 Dr Siouxie Wiles and Dr Michelle Dickinson
- 18 March 2020 11:00 - 11:45 Local Government New Zealand
- 18 March 2020 16:30 - 17:30 Cabinet Committee on COVID-19
- 19 March 2020 16:00 - 17:00 Cabinet
4) All correspondence by letter or email between the PMO and the following
people/organisations for the month of March 2020:
- CEO, Chair and Head of Corporate Affairs of Air New Zealand
- Fonterra CE and Chair - Council of Trade Unions
- Commissioner of Police
- Chief Executive and General Manager of Business New Zealand
- Ulu 0 Tokelau
- Dr Siouxie Wiles or Dr Michelle Dickinson
- Local Government New Zealand
Searching the email records of former Ministers of the Crown
The Department’s Ministerial Services Group is deemed to hold the records
of former Ministers of the Crown. Although the Department is deemed to
hold the information relating to former Ministers, we do not have the
ability to perform searches on the parliamentary server (where the
electronic records are held). We commission Parliamentary Service (IT) to
run the required searches on our behalf.
The search engine used by Parliamentary Service works by using keywords to
search the email accounts of former Prime Ministers/Ministers as well as
any information saved by the former Prime Minister’s staff to the office
shared drive. Each keyword used involves a separate search, and depending
on the amount of information being searched through, this can take a
significant amount of time.
Additionally, if the keyword used is not specific enough, a large amount
of irrelevant information could be found. Processing and reviewing large
amounts of electronic documents is an administratively difficult task. For
example, using the keyword “agenda”, “minutes”, or “COVID” will return all
emails/documents that contain those words sent or received by the former
Prime Minister/Minister. The time period of March 2020 saw an
unprecedented volume of correspondence being sent and received by all
Ministers at the time including the former Prime Minister.
Physical records
By way of background, in the lead up to the Rt Hon Dame Jacinda Ardern’s
resignation, the Department provided resource to catalogue and archive the
information relevant to her role as Prime Minister. This was a unique
circumstance and has not occurred for all former Prime Ministers. However,
it does mean we are able to access physical documents that may contain
information relevant to your request.
Refinement of original request
Due to the complexity and scale of your request, a search of electronic
records would present an administratively difficult task and would likely
result in a refusal of your request under section 18(f) of the Act. As
your request would present an administratively difficult process,
involving 10+ separate keyword searches for electronic records, we propose
that a search of the former Prime Minister’s archived physical records
would be a manageable option.
If the approach of narrowing your request to physical records is
acceptable, could you please confirm your acceptance by return email by 27
January 2025.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Te Haumi | Enterprise Partnerships
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[3]www.dia.govt.nz
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References
Visible links
1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
3. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: Chris Johnston
Dear MaSS info,
Thanks for your email, and Consulting on the best way to manage the potential workload.
Apologies for the delay in replying as I have been tramping and camping over the summer break.
I am happy with the approach that you have suggested, but would request that once you know the volume of items that result from your search I may be able to provide guidance on which we can ignore - informed by which items present too much effort in your judgement.
For example if you say there are 10,000 items for Air NZ and 2 for Susie Wiles then we will be able to guide you on where the cost/benefit sits.
Please let me know that you are OK with this approach.
Yours sincerely,
Chris Johnston
From: MaSS info
image001.png
4K
Download
image002.png
8K
Download
OIA 2425 0618 Response signed.pdf
211K
Download
View as HTML
Kia ora Chris
Please find the attached response to your Official Information Act request
from the Department of Internal Affairs.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Te Haumi | Enterprise Partnerships
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
References
Visible links
1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: MaSS info
image001.png
4K
Download
image002.png
8K
Download
OIA 2425 0666 Response signed.pdf
2.4M
Download
View as HTML
Kia ora Chris
Please find the attached response to your Official Information Act request
from the Department of Internal Affairs.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Services
Partnerships and Commissions Branch
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
[1]www.dia.govt.nz
[2]Logo-test
References
Visible links
1. http://www.dia.govt.nz/
From: Chris Johnston
Dear MaSS info,
Thanks for the information in pdfs:
- OIA 2425 0618 Response signed.pdf sent February 11, 2025 and
- OIA 2425 0666 Response signed.pdf sent February 12, 2025
Could you please pass the following comments to “Karl McDiarmid, Acting General manager – Ministerial Services” who signed the responses, and the relevant Ministers:
1) "OneDrave" mis-pelling should be changed to “OneDrive” in the document in Appendix B 2025 Reshuffle Advice: Getting your Minister’s information ready for transition – A guide for Senior Private Secretaries, Section 2 Page 4 of 12.
2) It seems the Microsoft stack (including SharePoint sites/pages which is where “Pukete” repositories probably reside) is being used by Parliament and Ministers.
3) There does not appear to be a smart tool available to public servants in DIA to search the file servers for documents and/or contents using more than one keyword and/or a series of filters. Mention is made in the Consultation on this OIA that one search term needs to be entered at a time and the results reviewed – causing significant workload. This sounds like default directory searches are being used that also trawls the contained documents for the keyword being searched.
This limits the discoverability/findability of Records, harms the efficient function of government, and the effectiveness of the OIA for the public (because “too much effort” is the frequent catch cry across many departments and OIA responses.
4) OIA 2425 0666 Response signed.pdf Appendix A and Appendix B mention that it is the responsibility of Ministers to sort/classify/dispose of their documents, but that the DIA Information Management team assist in this process. Where documents exist electronically in Pukeke this process is more delegated (but not completely due to the need to consult) to the DIA Information Management team.
5) So hard copies and personal drives (H and OneDrive) is where the work is for Senior Private Secretaries.
6) Can you please confirm that DIA is aware of the work of Auckland Transport that was awarded the ALGIM (Association of Local Government Information Management) Information Management Project of the Year Award 2023 for AT's "Innovative approach to automating digital records management" as listed here https://algim.org.nz/2023Awards
The technology tool they deployed during Project Haystack, is built and delivered by a New Zealand company and is used internationally. It auto tags documents on file servers as well as SharePoint and enables users to undertake their searches using the core SharePoint search index – enabling multi-search term functionality. Many assume MS Copilot will solve this – it does not achieve a number of aspects of the Auckland Transport deployment – especially the rules based engine/reference data.
Some interesting findings/outcomes from that project included:
a) Documents were automatically classified and tagged with the Taxonomy/Ontology of the organisation – without human intervention and including scans of hard copy documents and file servers.
b) That most documents were being stored in private OneDrives but now became discoverable by Information Management/LGOIMA/OIA teams.
c) Hard copy documents and archives were high quality scanned and photocopiers amended to enable optical character recognition (OCR) to enable the text to be read once stored on the drives and/or SharePoint. Hard copy classification effort also decreased.
d) Staff across the organisation could now find information and discover what each were working on and/or the history.
e) Rules for retention and archive could now be defined and automated on the tags. Speeches about the Harbour Bridge by the CEO could now be distinguished and treated differently from the engineering designs that needed to be kept online and onsite forever in case of an incident that needed immediate repair.
f) They leapt from failing their Public Record compliance audits to being one of the leaders in New Zealand – without substantially increasing the staffing levels of the core Information Management team. The CIO stopped walking the floor fuming that they could never find anything.
g) The entire upgrade could be done without disrupting core staff or endless consultation on language terms, nor the requirement for end users to classify their document manually (as per the standard Microsoft functionality and the typical trajectory of Knowledge Management projects).
Now none of the above may help us for the OIA requests I made leading up to this point, but I would like you to supply any document that demonstrates:
I) That DIA is aware of the Auckland transport project mentioned above and
ii) Any plans or proposal by the Prime Minister’s Office, Minister of Internal Affairs and/or DIA to implement automated document tagging/classification and/or automated retention management recommendations.
iii) Any time frames for achieving increased search capabilities.
I think that this would decrease the workload and administrative burden on Parliament, Cabinet, Ministers and Central Government agencies/departments, and as a result decrease cost to taxpayers, increase the effectiveness of government and the functioning of democracy through better information flow.
The Ombudsman might also get fewer OIA complaints.
Thanks for your attention and consideration of this information, recommendation and question.
Yours sincerely,
Chris Johnston
From: EntServ BP
Good morning Chris
Thank you for your OIA request.
The Department will provide its response to your request as soon as
practicable and within twenty working days. The 20th working day is 13
March 2025. I have identified parts of your email as specific to your OIA
request and highlighted them in yellow below.
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.
Ngā mihi
Wendy Balfour | Kaitohutohu Mātāmua| Principal Advisor
Branch Performance
Enterprise Services
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs
Direct Dial: +64 4 819 8945| Extn: 5720 |[mobile number] Pipitea Street | PO Box 805, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
[1]dia.govt.nz | [2]Facebook | [3]LinkedIn
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