19 Section 15(4) provides that where a person has directed a request to an agency, and the request is one that should have been directed to (relevantly) a Minister, it is the duty of the agency to take reasonable steps to assist the person to direct the request to the appropriate Minister.
20 Section 11A of the FOI Act provides:
11A Access to documents on request
Scope
(1) This section applies if:
- (a) a request is made by a person, in accordance with subsection 15(2), to an agency or Minister for access to:
- (i) a document of the agency; or
- (ii) an official document of the Minister; and
- (b) any charge that, under the regulations, is required to be paid before access is given has been paid.
(2) This section applies subject to this Act.
Mandatory access—general rule
(3) The agency or Minister must give the person access to the document in accordance with this Act, subject to this section.
Exemptions and conditional exemptions
(4) The agency or Minister is not required by this Act to give the person access to the document at a particular time if, at that time, the document is an exempt document.
(5) The agency or Minister must give the person access to the document if it is conditionally exempt at a particular time unless (in the circumstances) access to the document at that time would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest.
(6) Despite subsection (5), the agency or Minister is not required to give access to the document at a particular time if, at that time, the document is both:
- (a) a conditionally exempt document; and
- (b) an exempt document:
- (i) under Division 2 of Part IV (exemptions); or
- (ii) within the meaning of paragraph (b) or (c) of the definition of exempt document in subsection 4(1).
21 The definition of "exempt document" in s 4(1) is as follows:
- (a) a document that is exempt for the purposes of Part IV (exempt documents) (see section 31B); or
