29 August 2022
Harold
[FYI request #20096 email]
Dear Harold,
Thank you for your email of 1 August 2022 in which you request the following under the Official
Information Act 1982 (OIA):
I would like to make a request for copies of the following briefings received by the
minister in his role as Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control:
1) 7/12/2020 Approval for Foreign Military Aircraft to Land in New Zealand in 2021
2) 14/12/2020 First Meeting of Parties to the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty
3) 15/12/2020 Addendum to Briefing on First Meeting of Parties to the South Pacific
Nuclear Free Zone Treaty
4) 12/02/2021 Saudi Arabia: Export of Controlled Items
5) 16/02/2021 Proposed overflight by US Air Force B-52 aircraft
6) 16/02/2021 The Process for Considering Requests for Entry of Foreign Warships
into New Zealand Internal Waters
7) 15/03/2021 Air New Zealand: Control and Export Status of US Navy Engines
8) 21/06/2021 Operation Burnham: National Detention Policy
9) 21/06/2021 Briefing for call with Hon Jeremiah Manele, Minister of Foreign Affairs
and External Trade (Solomon Islands)
10) 18/10/2021 - Submission: United Nations General Assembly: First Committee on
Disarmament and International Security
11) 6/12/2021 - Brief for Meeting - Pacific Roundtable on the Treaty on the Prohibition
of Nuclear Weapons – Updated Briefing Materials
12) 08/12/2021 - Submission - Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference –
Aotearoa New Zealand Approach
13) 10/12/2021 - Brief for Meeting - Treaty of Rarotonga Consultative Committee – 15
December 2021, 11am-3pm
14) 23/12/2021 - Aide Memoire - Nuclear legacy in the Pacific – Advancing our work
15) Final y, in response to Written Parliamentary Question 43291 (2021): “What
reports, briefings, memos, aides-memoire, notes or written advice, if any, has the
Minister received about nuclear-armed submarines?” The minister replied “None to
date, but I understand briefing is under preparation” (as at 23 September 2021). I
would like to request a copy of the briefing referred to here.
This letter is to advise that the timeframe for responding to your request is being extended by 20
working days, to 26 September 2022. This is because consultations necessary to make a decision
on your request are such that a proper response cannot reasonably be made within the original
time frame (section 15A(1)(b) of the OIA refers).
I am also partially transferring documents 1,4,5,6,7,8 and 15 of your OIA to the Minister of Foreign
Affairs because the documents are believed to be more closely connected with the functions of
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the Minister of Foreign Affairs (section 14(b)(ii) of the OIA refers). In these circumstances, we are
required by section 14 of the Official Information Act to transfer your request.
You will hear further from the Minister of Foreign Affairs concerning the transferred briefings.
However, if this process is completed before 26 September 2022, the response will be sent to you
as soon as possible.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision by
contactin
g www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.
Yours sincerely
Hon Phil Twyford
Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control
