The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s (OAIC) third five-yearly review of the Information Publication Scheme (IPS) highlights how a concerted effort is required by government agencies to support proactive release of information.

The Information Publication Scheme (IPS) requires agencies to publish a broad range of information on their website and authorises agencies to proactively publish other information. The IPS continues to be an important element in ensuring information held by Australian Government agencies is managed for public purposes and is treated as a national resource.

The results of the review, conducted by survey in late 2023, assist both the OAIC and agencies to identify where improvements can be made to support the proactive publication of government-held information and inform the OAIC’s priorities as the regulator.

Overall, the results provide persuasive evidence that there is much to be done to realise the object of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) that information held by government is to be managed for public purposes and is a national resource.

The results also confirm that the systems to promote and support proactive release of information require a concerted effort by agencies.

• Only 29% of agencies have adopted a strategy for increasing open access to information they hold, down from 35% in 2018.
• Only 73% of agencies publish information that they routinely release in response to freedom of information (FOI) requests, down from 79% in 2018 and 86% in 2012.
• 75% of agencies publish consultation arrangements for members of the public to comment on specific policy proposals for which the agency is responsible, slightly above 72% in 2018 but below 86% in 2012.