Comment on Privacy Guidelines
17 April 2001 at 1:04 pm
The Federal Privacy Commissioner has issued draft Code Development Guidelines for the recent amendments to the Privacy Act for public consultation.
When finalised these guidelines will apply to any organisation that wishes to gain approval for its own privacy code as a replacement for the National Privacy Principles.
Privacy Commissioner, Malcolm Crompton stresses that the guidelines are only in draft form and that the intention of the consultation period is to get feedback from as many people as possible on ways in which they might be improved.
The Commissioner says there are several sections of the Draft Guidelines where there are outstanding issues that will need to be clarified before the final version is released in July.
He says it is importance to achieve the right balance: they must be workable and allow organisations to find efficient and innovative ways of protecting personal information and they must also meet community expectations.
He says this balance will be achieved by ensuring that the community consultation procedures spelt out in the Act for developing codes are fully effective and this is one of a number of areas where the Draft Guidelines spell out quite specific requirements.
He says active participation from all stakeholders is essential for the code process to work effectively. The closing date for submissions is Friday 15 June 2001. Your submission can be sent either through the mail to:
Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
SYDNEY NSW 1042
Or via email to consultation@privacy.gov.au
The Privacy Commissioner intends to make any submission received on the Draft Code Development Guidelines publicly available unless requested otherwise.
You can obtain a copy of the guidelines from Pro Bono Australia via e-mail to probono@probonoaustralia.com.au or through the Privacy Commissioner’s website at www.privacy.gov.au.
