News

Police failed to advise a requester of its decision on an Official Information Act (OIA) request as early as it could have because of its practice of advising the Police Minister three working days in advance of decisions on certain requests.

Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier has formed an opinion that the public interest did not outweigh reasons to withhold information requested under the Official Information Act from the Ministry of Health about the COVID-19 vaccination programme.

The Chief Ombudsman’s Māori panel – Pūhara Mana Tangata – has published a report of its first two years in operation.

The Chief Ombudsman has published a case note on an investigation following a complaint by a requester about a number of refusals by Inland Revenue to provide information.

Today is International Right to Know Day.

As New Zealand’s Chief Ombudsman, it is one of the most significant dates in my calendar.

Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier has recommended the Ministry of Education apologise to the Taihape Area School community and board of trustees over its handling of a farm that was bought by the former Taihape College and local community.

The complainant was injured at a mine site on 11 April 2018 while doing a demolition job for a mining company. The company notified WorkSafe and advised that the complainant suffered a minor soft tissue injury.

Failure by the Minister for Courts to make and communicate his decision on a request for official information within extended time limit — Ombudsman investigation found a failure to meet statutory obligations imposed by the OIA —appeared contrary to law

A woman who sold her car and left New Zealand in December 2019 found herself at the receiving end of correspondence from a debt collection agency for unpaid toll fees.

The Inquiries Act 2013 provided a new framework for the conduct of public and government inquiries into matters of public importance.

But there has been some uncertainty about how it interacts with the Official Information Act (OIA).

A case note released today looks into a complaint about Child, Youth and Family, which became Oranga Tamariki – Ministry for Children, removing a five-day-old child from their autistic mother.

The Independent Monitoring Mechanism (IMM) is writing a report about disabled people’s experiences during the COVID-19 emergency.  

One of the Chief Ombudsman’s roles is to check on the treatment and conditions of people held in secure facilities – places people can’t leave even if they want to.

Our annual report is now online and it shows what we’ve been doing over the past year to improve how we handle your complaints and protect your rights to request information.

The Chief Ombudsman has published a new guide in response to questions about the impact of the Parliamentary Privilege Act (PPA) on the OIA.