21 September 2022
Sebastian
[FYI request #17660 email]
Reference: OIA-2021/22-1326
Dear Sebastian
Investigation of Official Information Act complaint
Request relating to Counter-Terrorism review documents
I refer to your request made under the Official Information Act, received on
10 May 2022. Your request was for:
“ONE: A copy of the report titled “A National Security & Intelligence Framework
for New Zealand” (Michael Wintringham and Jane Jones, September 2009)
TWO: A copy of the report titled “Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Value for Money Review” (Murray Horn, August 2012)
THREE: I would also like to renew my request for the document I requested in
November, namely the document I identified as “Independent Review of Current
Activity and Development of a Counter-Terrorism Strategy by Steve Long, 2015.”
You provided the following additional context to your request:
“In your response letter of 8 February you advised me that “there is no 2015
document written by Steve Long with [that] title…” For your reference, my source
for this request was Part 8, Chapter 2 of the Christchurch attacks Royal
Commission of Inquiry report. The title, author and date of publication is given in
Table 12 as I quoted it, as can be seen here:
https://christchurchattack.royalcommission.nz/the-report/part-8-assessing-the-
counter-terrorism-effort/the-setting/
In Part 8, Chapter 3 the same report is apparently referred to in paragraph 45:
“A 2015 report reiterated the need for a New Zealand counter-terrorism strategy.
That report identified an insufficient emphasis on risk assessment, the absence of
formalised arrangements that enabled ministers to weigh up the violent extremist
or terrorist risk against other national security risks and the lack of whole-of-
government counter-terrorism work programme management, reporting or
evaluation. It also identified the continued absence of planned and regular public
engagement on the terrorism risks facing New Zealanders at home and abroad
and measures taken to counter those risks.””
Executive Wing, Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand 6011
4615832
64 4 817 9698 www.dpmc.govt.nz
In addition, you requested:
“I would like to request a copy of the report referred to in this paragraph.
I would further like to request:
1) If any review was completed for DPMC by former Director of the Domestic and
External Security Group Steve Long on any topic, since 2010, and if so, what is
the title and date of publication.
2) If any reviews of the counter-terrorism system were completed for DPMC from
2010 to 2018 (besides "Counter-Terrorism: A review of the New Zealand CT
landscape" by Simon Murdoch, 2013), and if so what are their titles and dates of
publication”.
As you are aware, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) extended
the time limits for responding to your request by an additional 35 working days under
the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act), making the due date for communicating a
decision on your request 28 July 2022. As we did not communicate a decision by
28 July 2022, you requested that the Office of the Ombudsman investigate. Following
that investigation, the Ombudsman determined that DPMC did not meet the statutory
obligations imposed by the Act.
DPMC accepts that there was an undue delay in responding to your request. I
apologise for that failing. The performance of the department in this case did not meet
our expectations. Please be assured that steps are being taken to learn from this
particular case, and we are actively seeking to improve our responses.
DPMC sincerely apologises for failing to respond to you within the statutory time limits
regarding this request.
Yours sincerely
Tony Lynch
Deputy Chief Executive National Security Group
cc:
Office of the Ombudsman
Ombudsman reference: 588495
