NDIA Accountability Project

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Freedom of Information request — Notification of Decision

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Our reference: FOI 22/23-1023

                                                        GPO Box 700
                                                                                 Canberra ACT 2601

12 November 2023 1800 800 110 ndis.gov.au Josh (Right to Know)

By email: foi+request-9764-ded550e4@righttoknow.org.au

Dear Josh (Right to Know)

Freedom of Information request — Notification of Decision

Thank you for your correspondence of 26 December 2022, in which you requested access to documents held by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

Scope of your request

You have requested access to the following documents:

“Since establishment in 2013, how many times, and from what countries, has the NDIA/NDIS digital systems and infrastructure been accessed from overseas/international locations by APS staff, contractors, labour-hire or approved accounts? For example, an APS employee travelling to India for a wedding, a labor-hire contractor working remotely from Singapore, a board member travelling in China, and NDA employee/contractor holidaying in Russia, checking their email, etc. That sort of thing.”

Decision on access to documents

I am authorised to make decisions under section 23(1) of the FOIAct. My decision on your request and the reasons for my decision are set out below. I have decided to refuse your request for access under section 24A of the FOI Act. The reasons for my decision are set out below. In reaching my decision, I took the following into account:

  • your correspondence outlining the scope of your request the FOI Act
  • the FOI Guidelines published under section 93A of the FOI Act
  • consultation with relevant officers of the NDIA
  • the NDIA’s operating environment and functions.

Reasons for decision - Refuse a request for access (section 24A)

Section 24A of the FOI Act provides that an agency may refuse a request for access to a document if all reasonable steps have been taken to find the document and the agency is satisfied that the document cannot be found or does not exist. I have conducted searches of the NDIA’s documents management systems and made enquiries with NDIA staff. These enquiries have revealed that the NDIA is not in possession of documents matching the scope of your request. This is because The management of the oversea travel function has move many times since its inception from DSS, SA, NDIA ITSA and now NDIA Protective Security (actioned by Cyberops). As a result, there is no single record.

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Rights of review

It is therefore my decision that this request cannot be fulfilled.

I am satisfied that all reasonable steps have been taken to locate the documents you have requested and that the documents do not exist. I have, therefore, decided to refuse access to your request in accordance with section 24A(1)(b)(ii) of the FOI Act.

Your rights to seek a review of my decision, or lodge a complaint, are set out at Attachment A.

Should you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me by email at foi@ndis.gov.au.

Yours sincerely

Ankit Senior Freedom of Information Officer Parliamentary, Ministerial & FOI Branch Government Division

Attachment A

Your review rights

Internal Review

The FOI Act gives you the right to apply for an internal review of this decision. The review will be conducted by a different person to the person who made the original decision.

If you wish to seek an internal review of the decision, you must apply for the review, in writing, within 30 days of receipt of this letter.

No particular form is required for an application for internal review, but to assist the review process, you should clearly outline your grounds for review (that is, the reasons why you disagree with the decision). Applications for internal review can be lodged by email to foi@ndis.gov.au or sent by post to:

Freedom of Information Section Parliamentary, Ministerial & FOI Branch Government Division National Disability Insurance Agency GPO Box 700 Canberra ACT 2601

Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner

The FOI Act also gives you the right to apply to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) to seek a review of this decision.

If you wish to have the decision reviewed by the OAIC, you may apply for the review, in writing, or by using the online merits review form available on the OAIC’s website at www.oaic.gov.au, within 60 days of receipt of this letter.

Applications for review can be lodged with the OAIC in the following ways:

Complaints to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner or the

Commonwealth Ombudsman You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the OAIC about actions taken by the NDIA in relation to your request. The Ombudsman will consult with the OAIC before investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.

Your complaint to the OAIC can be directed to the contact details identified above. Your complaint to the Ombudsman can be directed to:

Your complaint should be in writing and should set out the grounds on which it is considered that the actions taken in relation to the request should be investigated Division.