Excerpt from summary
The complainant made requests to:
- Hon Shane Jones in his capacity as Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, Regional Development, and Resources;
- Hon Simeon Brown in his capacity as Minister for Energy, Auckland, Local Government and Transport;
- Hon Chris Bishop in his capacity as Minister for Infrastructure, Housing, RMA Reform and Sport and Recreation.
The complainant requested all text messages, WhatsApp and Snapchat messages sent and received within these roles relating to the period 20 March to 20 April 2024. It covered all devices and timestamps.
The complainant was happy for Ministers to remove phone numbers and all names/details of members of the public but he stated that for ‘messages…to or from people with any role in the current Government or with relevant public departments at a minimum that role should be listed’.
Where Ministers considered the messages to be out of scope, the complainant asked that an entry be included and the scope they are within stated.
Two of the Ministers, Hon Shane Jones and Hon Chris Bishop contacted the complainant before refusing the request. Minister Jones advised that the request was ‘particularly broad and would require substantial collation and research’. These Ministers asked the complainant to consider refining his request by either narrowing the timeframe or specifying particular information. Mr Jones advised that depending upon the response; he might extend the timeframe for processing the request and/or consider refusing the request under section 18(f) of the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). Minister Bishop similarly noted that the request as worded would require substantial collation or research and recommended narrowing the scope of the request.
The complainant did not agree that a refusal under section 18(f) was justified and declined to refine his request.
All three Ministers ultimately refused the request under section 18(f) ‘as the information requested cannot be made available without substantial collation or research’.
Based on the information before me, I have formed a final opinion that it was open to the Ministers to refuse the requests, as worded, under section 18(f) as the requested information for the portfolios and time period specified could not be made available without substantial collation or research.
However, I am disappointed that Minister Jones and Minister Bishop’s efforts to consult the complainant before relying on section 18(f) were not more fulsome. I am also disappointed that Minister Brown did not consult the complainant before refusing the request, in circumstances where consultation could have enabled the complainant to make the request in a form that would remove the reason for the refusal. I consider these concerns resolved by all Ministers confirming to me that they remain open to discussing potential alternative approaches with the complainant to address his information requests should he so wish.
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