Chief Ombudsman John Allen has warned compliance with the Official Information Act (OIA) by Government Ministers and agencies will come under closer scrutiny as New Zealand’s General Election approaches.
Mr Allen confirmed his office is rolling out a suite of initiatives to ensure Government ministers and agencies pay extra close attention to their obligations under the OIA in the lead up to election day.
“During this time, voters will be seeking information that will help them make decisions on who will best represent their interests and who should be making the laws and policies that will affect their lives in the future,” said Mr Allen.
“Ministers and agencies must apply the OIA correctly and work quickly to minimise the risk of information becoming irrelevant.
“We are contacting the Prime Minister and the Public Service Commissioner directly to urge them to plan ahead for this period and to get it right the first time for requesters. We will also be asking ministers and agencies to push information out proactively if they see a pattern of requests about an issue, so the information is available to everyone.
“This also has the positive effect for ministerial offices and agencies of minimising the administrative demand on their staff from having to respond to individual requests.”
The Chief Ombudsman says requesters also have a part to play in ensuring the Official Information Act functions correctly.
“The public must exercise their rights under the law responsibly. This includes making sure their requests are reasonable and that they refrain from slowing down the process by engaging in things like ‘fishing expeditions.’ This isn’t helpful to anyone. We want them to be willing to engage with Ministers and agencies quickly when clarity is needed about what they are seeking,” he said.
Mr Allen says the role his office will play over the pre-election period will be more critical than ever with people’s growing reliance on social media as a source of news.
“While there are obvious benefits to getting information through social media, there is a risk that people may not be getting the big picture, or a contestable view. This can cause harm and shape public perception in ways that may be deceptive or misleading.”
“We will demonstrate what we are doing to make sure New Zealanders have access to reliable, accurate information that they need to decide their vote. As the country’s independent overseer, we can quickly review and confirm what is true and not so the voter can rely on our report for accurate information.”
The Ombudsman’s office will also produce regular, targeted guidance for Ministers, agencies and the public on how to approach requests over the next few months as well as advice on dealing with issues that were problematic during past pre-election periods.
There will also be guidance on the prudent use of AI for agencies, requesters and complainants during this time.
Additionally, the Office will publish the number of complaints it has received about Ministers’ handling of OIA requests on a weekly basis, what they’re about and how they’re being dealt with, Mr Allen said.
“We will be reminding the public that they can seek our advice and can complain to us if they are unhappy about the way their requests have been handled. We are geared up to deal with any such complaints urgently,” he said.
