4.14 Security and management of Cabinet information
Cabinet is the highest decision-making body in government and
therefore matters discussed have significant implications for the State, private
sector business and individuals. The unauthorised and/or premature disclosure of
matters contained in Cabinet documents (Cabinet-in-Confidence information) can
be damaging to the public policy agenda and the government generally, and to the
public interest. Unlawful disclosure of Cabinet-in-Confidence information may
constitute an offence under the Criminal Code, Public Sector Ethics
Act 1994 and constitute official misconduct under the Crime and
Misconduct Act 2001.
Offence provisions relating to unlawful disclosure of Cabinet-in-Confidence
information relates to both electronic and hardcopy forms of information.
For the purpose of this chapter, "Cabinet documents" includes any document,
that if disclosed would reveal any consideration of Cabinet, or otherwise
prejudice the confidentiality of Cabinet considerations or operations. As
defined in Chapter
1.6 "Definition of Cabinet documents", the range
of documents that are considered as Cabinet documents is extremely broad and
can include any information that is prepared as part of Cabinet policy
development, consultative processes, and/or during Cabinet submission drafting.
These documents, whether maintained in electronic and/or hardcopy form, must be
the subject to the same security consciousness as any documents actually
considered by Cabinet or generated as a result of Cabinet's deliberations.
Ministers and Chief Executive Officers are accountable for
Cabinet-in-Confidence information held within their respective
portfolios/departments, and accordingly they must be satisfied with the adequacy
of measures designed to protect the security and confidentiality of that
information.
Should a breach of security be suspected or detected in relation to
Cabinet-in-Confidence information, the Cabinet Secretary should be notified
immediately.
4.14.1 Filing and storage of Cabinet documents
Security measures governing the filing and storage of electronic and hardcopy
Cabinet documents need to be tailored to each department's information
management systems and business environment to ensure high security and reduce
the risk of unauthorised disclosure of information.
Security measures will typically be a blend of technological solutions and
administrative safeguards, with the former being determined on the basis of
advice of information technology specialists conversant with the department's
information systems. Technological solutions will need to be targeted to
provide for an acceptable security profile on critical areas of information
systems involving the transmission or storage of Cabinet-in-Confidence
information.
Hardcopy Cabinet-in-Confidence documents must be filed on dedicated files
held within dedicated secure storage areas, and not on general purpose files
which are generally accessible and circulated without access controls.
Similarly electronic information must be stored in dedicated secure drives and
directory structures, and not in areas which are generally accessible to
unauthorised officers.
Other issues which should be considered in connection with departmental
information systems are:
- password protected screen-savers should be installed on the personal
computers where officers have access to Cabinet-in-Confidence information;
- system safeguards should ensure that a high level of security on
Cabinet-in-Confidence information against incursion by external parties via
network and internet connections; and
- administrative practices should govern the printing of Cabinet-in-Confidence
information and the subsequent secure disposal of that printed information.
Access to Cabinet-in-Confidence information, whether in hardcopy or
electronic form, must be administered closely, with access being granted only on
the authority of the CLLO or other designated delegate(s) of the Minister and
Chief Executive Officer. Refer to Chapter 4.15 for further information regarding access to
Cabinet documents.
During development or consideration of Cabinet proposals, departments should
be vigilant as to the confidential status of the information, and actively work
towards keeping working documents to a minimum. On finalisation of Cabinet
submissions, "draft" versions should be deleted or disposed of in favour of a
master final original copy maintained by the CLLO and/or official copies
circulated by the Cabinet Secretariat. Disposal of documents must be in
accordance with the provisions of the Public Records Act 2002 governing
the disposal of public records.
Administrative practices, to a standard approved by the Minister and Chief
Executive Officer, must govern the secure filing and storage of
Cabinet-in-Confidence information beginning at the time of its creation.
Regular audits must be conducted by departments to ensure compliance.
On change of government, all forms of Cabinet documents must be treated in
strict accordance with "Caretaker conventions" as outlined in Chapter 9.
4.14.2 Copying of Cabinet documents
Apart from copying associated with the lodgement process for Cabinet
submissions, copying of Cabinet documents circulated by the Cabinet Secretariat
is not permitted. These documents include Cabinet submissions and attachments,
decisions, minutes of proceedings, business lists and Department of the Premier
and Cabinet briefing notes.
All requests for copies of these documents must be directed in writing to the
Cabinet Secretary through the CLLO. If approved, copies will be provided on
"Cabinet Secretariat Official Copy" paper printed for the purpose.
4.14.3 Security measures on circulated Cabinet documents
All Cabinet documents circulated by the Cabinet Secretariat are uniquely
bar-coded with circulation details recorded in a computerised database. On
return of Cabinet documents, the bar codes are individually scanned into the
database which finalises the records. Documents that have not been returned are
classified as outstanding.
The Cabinet Secretariat will periodically conduct audits of outstanding
Cabinet documents (ie. those submissions and decisions that have been circulated
for perusal and return).
In the event of loss of these documents, the procedure outlined in Chapter 4.14.6 "Loss of Cabinet documents"should be
followed.
4.14.4 Retention of Cabinet documents
Departments are entitled to retain Cabinet documents circulated by the
Cabinet Secretariat provided that they are issued for ongoing records purposes,
that is where there is implementation responsibility ("Gold", "Silver", "Green"
or "Pink" copy decision) or some other departmental interest has been
established ("Blue" or "Pink" decision). All other documents issued for
perusal and return ("White" decision) must be returned promptly to the Cabinet
Secretariat.
If a department wishes to retain a document circulated for perusal and
return, the department will be required to provide a written request to the
Cabinet Secretary.
4.14.5 Disposal of Cabinet documents
The Cabinet Secretariat is responsible for the destruction of all Cabinet
documents that have been circulated as part of the official Cabinet record and
are no longer required by departments. These documents include Cabinet
submissions and attachments, decisions, minutes of proceedings, business lists
and Department of the Premier and Cabinet briefing notes.
All unwanted documents must be returned to the Cabinet Secretariat with a
covering letter listing all documents being returned. After recording the
return of the documents, secure disposal will be undertaken. If after return of
a document a department subsequently requires access to that document, a request
for an official copy can be directed in writing to the Cabinet Secretary through
the CLLO. Refer to Chapter 4.15 "Access to Cabinet documents"for further
information.
At a change of government and in accordance with Caretaker conventions
described in Chapter 9, all Cabinet documents circulated to
departments, including those that have been issued for records purposes, must be
returned to the Cabinet Secretariat for disposal.
All other Cabinet documents not circulated by the Cabinet Secretariat, such
as working papers and general correspondence on Cabinet proposals, may be
disposed of by the department without recourse to the Cabinet Secretariat.
Departments should however ensure that any such action is in accordance with the
provisions of the Public Records Act 2002 governing the disposal of
public records.
4.14.6 Loss of Cabinet documents
As explained in this chapter, unauthorised disclosure of Cabinet
information can have significant implications for the State and other bodies and
individuals affected by decisions. Furthermore, unlawful disclosure of Cabinet
information may constitute an offence under the Criminal Code, the
Public Sector Ethics Act 1994, and constitute official misconduct under
the Crime and Misconduct Act 2001.
The loss of Cabinet documents held by departments is a serious issue that may
have serious implications as previously discussed.
Immediately upon discovery of the loss of a Cabinet document circulated by
the Cabinet Secretariat, the matter must be reported to the Cabinet Secretary.
The Minister or the Chief Executive Officer, as the accountable officers, must
then instigate an appropriate investigation into the issue. In cases where it is
suspected that the loss can be attributed to unlawful activity, the matter
should be referred to the Queensland Police or the Crime and Misconduct
Commission for investigation depending upon circumstances.
Upon conclusion of investigations, and if the Cabinet document in question
has not been recovered, the Chief Executive Officer will be required to provide
official notification of the loss in writing to the Cabinet Secretary. This
notification will be used to finalise the outstanding status of the document on
the database maintained by the Cabinet Secretariat. Depending on the
circumstances of the matter, the notification may be required to be drawn to the
attention of the Premier as Chairperson of Cabinet.
The notification must take the following minimum form. Additional information
may be provided where considered necessary.
insert date
The Cabinet Secretary
Cabinet Secretariat
Level 13, Executive Building
100 George Street
BRISBANE QLD 4000
Dear insert name
An audit of Cabinet documents issued to name of Department or Minister has highlighted the loss of the following Cabinet document:
| Document Type | Date | Document Number | Title |
|---|
| (Submission, Decision, etc.) | (Cabinet Date) | (Submission, Decision Number) | (Title of Document) |
The matter has been investigated and an extensive search has failed to locate the document. All appropriate and necessary actions have been taken in respect of this matter.
Please amend the Cabinet records with regards to the loss of the above document.
insert signature of Chief Executive Officer
insert name of Chief Executive Officer
4.14.7 Queensland State Archives
Official Cabinet documents should not be sent to the State
Archives by Ministers or departments. They must be returned to the Cabinet
Secretariat which will pass the documents to the State Archives at the
appropriate time.
After the expiration of a restricted access period, the State Archives will seek approval from the
current government whether it wishes to release the records.
For all Cabinet documents created after 1 July 2009, the restricted access period is 20 years; before this date the restricted access period is 30 years.
Generally most
records upon reaching 30 years of age, or 20 years for documents considered after 1 July 2009, will be released. There may however be
instances where it is not desirable for documents to be released because of
overriding privacy considerations or other factors in the public interest. In
these cases, State Archives will be requested to retain the documents for some
additional designated term.
Prior to the release of documents by the State Archives, the Cabinet Secretary will contact the present leader of the party
that formed the government in office during the period the records were created,
and afford the opportunity for the leader or nominee to view the documents at
the State Archives.
Last reviewed: 17 July, 2009
Last updated: 22 July, 2009
^ to top
