Pye and Australian Postal Corporation

Administrative

Appeals

Tribunal

 

DECISION AND REASONS FOR DECISION [2004] AATA 1097

ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TRIBUNAL      )

)          No Q2004/208

GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION		)
Re		WILLIAM PYE

Applicant

And AUSTRALIAN POSTAL CORPORATION

Respondent

DECISION

Tribunal Senior Member K L Beddoe

Date22 October 2004  

PlaceBrisbane

Decision The Tribunal affirms the decision under review.

.................[Sgd]........................

Senior Member

REASONS FOR DECISION

22 October 2004   Senior Member K L Beddoe          

1.      The applicant applied under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (“the Act”) for access to:

“All documents relative to the sale of the Sandgate Post Office located in Bowser Parade, Sandgate, Queensland to DM and MG Cross and Tinpike Pty Ltd for the sum of $390,000.”

2.      The applicant’s letter of application then referred to specific documents to be included in his request for access as follows:

“This should include but not be limited to:

all correspondence prepared or received dealing with the negotiations of the sale,

a copy of the contract of sale,

copy of valuation by independent valuer at $280,000,

copy of lease agreement on the new mail sorting building in Connaught Street, Sandgate,

copy of lease agreement of a shop in the proposed shopping centre,

the amount of rental being paid for the Sandgate Post Office until the proposed shopping centre is ready for occupation.”

3. The respondent decided it was exempt within the terms of section 7 of the Act in relation to the applicant’s request. It also decided section 41 of the Act exempted the requested documents.

4.      On internal review the respondent decided to affirm its initial decision. 

5. The object of the Act is found in sub-section 3(1) of the Act which reads as follows:

“3 Object

(1)       The object of this Act is to extend as far as possible the right of the Australian community to access to information in the possession of the Government of the Commonwealth by:

(a)making available to the public information about the operations of departments and public authorities and, in particular, ensuring that rules and practices affecting members of the public in their dealings with departments and public authorities are readily available to persons affected by those rules and practices; and

(b)creating a general right of access to information in documentary form in the possession of Ministers, departments and public authorities, limited only by exceptions and exemptions necessary for the protection of essential public interests and the private and business affairs of persons in respect of whom information is collected and held by departments and public authorities; and

(c)creating a right to bring about the amendment of records containing personal information that is incomplete, incorrect, out of date or misleading.”

6. Sub-section 11(1) provides, inter alia, that it is the intention of Parliament that the provisions of the Act shall be interpreted so as to further the object set out in sub-section 3(1).

7. Subsection 3(2) provides, subject to the Act, that every person has a legally enforceable right to obtain access in accordance with the…