FOI Guide No. 3     Issued: October 2001 Issued by the Office of the Information Commissioner (WA) Tel: 9220 7888  Fax: 9325 2152  Email: info@foi.wa.gov.au              1                                                                                                     Deliberative Process This is a plain English guide to the application of the exemption in clause 6 of the FOI Act.  An  agency  can  refuse  access  to  exempt  matter  or  an  exempt  document.  The word “matter” refers to a piece  of information.  It can be a  whole page or part  of  a page,  or  a  single  word  or  figure  on  a  page.    Parts  of  a  page  can  be  exempt  when other  parts  are  not.    Exemptions  are  not  mandatory;  agencies  have  a  discretion  to disclose  documents    that  may  be  technically  exempt  where  that  may  properly  be done.    Purpose Criteria What are   deliberative processes? Identifying the particular   deliberative process The   exemption   in   clause   6   ensures   effective   public        administration   by   protecting   from   disclosure   material forming part of the decision-making of agencies or of the government,  when  circumstances  require  confidentiality of those deliberations. . The exemption will only apply if the information is either: · opinion,   advice   or   recommendation   that   has   been obtained, prepared or recorded; or · any consultation or deliberation that has taken place AND · it was obtained, prepared, recorded or it took place in the course of, or for the purposes, of the deliberative processes of the Government or an agency AND · disclosure would be contrary to the public interest. Deliberative processes are “thinking processes”.  It refers to the way that an agency makes decisions.  It involves   the   gathering   of   information   from   a   wide   variety   of sources,    including    consultation    with    people    inside agencies  and  also  outside  agencies,  and  weighing  or considering   carefully   all   of  the   information   and  facts obtained  with  a  view  to  making  a  decision  or  reflecting upon the reasons for or against a particular choice. Agencies make decisions every day, but not all of those decisions  will  be  covered  by  the  exemption  in  clause  6.   To decide whether information is of the relevant kind, an agency    should    identify    or    describe    the    particular deliberative   process.   Sometimes   it   helps   to   briefly describe the context in which a document was created or information was obtained or recorded. It is also helpful to identify  the  stage  the  deliberations  have  reached  and whether or not a decision has in fact been made.