A January 10th press release from the Information and Privacy Commission of New South Wales:
Information and privacy rights in New South Wales have been strengthened with the launch of a new independent government agency this month.
The new Information and Privacy Commission (IPC) brings together the existing Office of the Information Commissioner and Privacy New South Wales.
NSW Information Commissioner Deirdre O’Donnell said the IPC would benefit members of the public and the media by promoting greater access to government information, while championing the privacy of individuals.
“Citizens in a robust democracy have the right to expect government agencies to be open and accountable,” Ms O’Donnell said.
“Equally, they have the right to demand that those agencies holding their personal and health information, whether government agencies or private organisations, respect their privacy and do not abuse their trust.
“The IPC has been established to promote and enforce rights to government information and privacy. Under this new independent agency, the Information Commissioner will continue to champion open government, while the Privacy Commissioner will promote and enforce the privacy rights of individuals.”
Acting Privacy Commissioner John McAteer said government agencies across the state would also benefit from the establishment of the IPC.
“The IPC will help government agencies meet their legislative responsibilities by providing consistent information about the protection of personal information and the disclosure of government-held information, and coordinated training on privacy and access matters,” he said.
The IPC was created under the Privacy and Government Information Legislation Amendment Act 2010, announced in Parliament in September 2009, with the agency commencing operations from 1 January 2011. The Act establishes the Information Commissioner as the head of the IPC.
The Information and Privacy Commission is located at Level 11, 1 Castlereagh Street, Sydney and is open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).
To learn more about the IPC, telephone (freecall): 1800 INFOCOM (1800 463 626),
or visit www.oic.nsw.gov.au or www.privacy.nsw.gov.au.
H/T, Open and Shut