1 Feb 2008, 09:00

A man had been the subject of an investigation by a government agency. He wanted a copy of his file as he believed that a third party had given the government agency false information.

The agency provided the man with some of the information on his file but withheld other information on the basis that it would identify the informants who provided information to the agency.

Principle 6

Principle 6 of the Privacy Act provides that an individual has a right of access to the personal information that an agency holds about them, unless one of the stated exceptions applies.

The government agency relied on sections 27(1)(c) and 29(1)(a) of the Privacy Act to refuse the man’s request for the remaining information.

We were satisfied that the agency was entitled to rely on section 27(1)(c) of the Privacy Act to withhold information which would identify informants. This was because this agency relied upon the free flow of information from third parties in order to detect and prevent offences. Those people would not provide information unless their identities were protected.

We were also satisfied that the agency could rely on section 29(1)(a) of the Privacy Act to withhold information that would disclose the affairs of the informants. The people had provided information that was highly personal to themselves. They had expressly requested that it remain confidential. In the circumstances, revealing that information would have been an unwarranted intrusion into their privacy.

However, we took the view that the agency could not withhold all the information. It was important for the man to know the substance of the allegations against him. Here, it was possible to provide him with a summary of the allegations without jeopardising the privacy of others, or identifying the informants. Providing a summary would strike a balance between the very strong rights of the requester to receive information about himself, and the agency’s interest in minimising the risk of identifying its informants.

We therefore recommended that the agency should provide the man with a summary of the information. The agency agreed to do so.

This was a positive outcome for all concerned. The man was happy with the summary and the agency recognised that this was a useful way of dealing with such matters.

Since the matter was settled on this basis, we then closed our file.

August 2008

Access to personal information – government agency – identity of informants – information about affairs of other individuals – summary of allegations – settlement – Privacy Act 1993, principle 6, sections 27(1)(c) and 29(1)(a)