Section 67(1) Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld)
Section 48 and Schedule 3, section 10(1)(c) Right to Information Act 2009 (Qld)
The applicant applied to the Department of Health (Department) for access to reports which had been submitted to the Supreme Court by various psychiatrists in 1997 and 2001.
Although the Department located 16 pages responsive to the application, it decided to refuse the applicant access to the information under section 67(1) of the Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld) pursuant to section 48 of the Right to Information Act 2009 (Qld) (RTI Act) on the basis that its disclosure could reasonably be expected to endanger a person’s life or physical safety under schedule 3, section 10(1)(c) of the RTI Act or result in a person being subjected to a serious act of harassment or intimidation under schedule 3, section 10(1)(d) of the RTI Act.
In determining the application of schedule 3, section 10(1)(c) of the RTI Act to the information, the Information Commissioner confirmed that on the evidence before her she was satisfied that:
· due to the nature and severity of the applicant’s illness and previous incidences involving him being violent and making threats, there are real and substantial grounds to expect that disclosure of the information would endanger the lives and physical safety of other persons
· the information is exempt information under schedule 3, section 10(1)(c) of the RTI Act.
In view of her findings above, the Information Commissioner identified that it was unnecessary to also consider the application of schedule 3, section 10(1)(d) of the RTI Act to the information.
In affirming the decision under review, the Information Commissioner decided that the Department was entitled to rely on section 67(1) of the IP Act to refuse the applicant access to the information.
