Policy Framework for Government-held Information

This framework is concerned with the responsibility of public servants in relation to information held by their departments. The framework takes account of the need to maintain a balance between the security and the power of the Crown to acquire, use and disclose information on the one hand, and the protection of individual rights and freedoms, and personal privacy on the other.

The law governing these matters is to be found mainly in the Official Information Act 1982 and its amendments, and in the Privacy Act 1993.

Framework Principles

Availability

Government departments should make information available easily, widely and equitably to the people of New Zealand (except where reasons preclude such availability as specified in legislation).

Coverage

Government departments should make the following information increasingly available on an electronic basis:

• all published material or material already in the public domain
• all policies that could be released publicly
• all information created or collected on a statutory basis (subject to commercial sensitivity and privacy considerations)
• all documents that the public may be required to complete, and
• corporate documentation in which the public would be interested.

Pricing

Free dissemination of information is appropriate where there is a clear public policy purpose and recovery of costs is not feasible or cost effective. Pricing to recover the cost of dissemination is appropriate if it is both feasible and cost effective or the information has been produced for a commercial purpose of sale at a profit.

Ownership

Government-held information, created or collected by any person employed or engaged by the Crown is a strategic resource 'owned' by the Government as a steward on behalf of the public.

Stewardship

Government departments are stewards of government-held information. It is their responsibility to implement good information management.

Collection

Information should only be collected for the purposes of specified public policy, operational business or legislation.

Copyright

Information created by departments is subject to Crown copyright. Where wide dissemination is desirable, the Crown should permit use of its copyrights subject to acknowledgement of source.

Preservation

Preservation of government-held information should only occur where there exists a public business need, a legislative or policy requirement, or a historical or archival reason.

Quality

Information needs to support the purposes for which it was collected. Quality criteria include accuracy, relevancy, timeliness, consistency and collection without bias.

Integrity

Integrity of government-held information is dependent on the information being managed in an open and transparent manner.

Privacy

The principles of the Privacy Act 1993 [www.legislation.govt.nz ] apply. These include principles relating to:

• purpose of collection of personal information
• source of personal information
• collection of information from subject
• manner of collection of personal information
• storage and security of personal information
• access to, and correction of, personal information
• accuracy of personal information to be checked before use
• length of time personal information can be held
• limits on use, and disclosure, of personal information, and
• unique identifiers.