Papers concerning final decisions by the Queensland cabinet have been released within the first 30 days of coming before state leaders, marking a first for any Australian jurisdiction.
The first two cabinet documents have been released as part of Queensland’s new proactive release scheme on Thursday, with Premier Steven Miles crediting his government as being the most transparent in Australia.
“While the first release was not due until May 10, I have decided to publish the first documents early in recognition of our commitment to transparency,” Miles said.
“My government is focused on supporting all Queenslanders, and the release of cabinet documents will serve to emphasise the great work we are doing every day in all communities across the state.”
The proactive release scheme process is modelled after a similar ‘push model’ in New Zealand. It was introduced in the wake of a review of culture and accountability in the Queensland Public Sector (QPS), led by Peter Coaldrake, and accords with the principle that government should routinely and proactively release information.
Under the scheme, which applies to cabinet documents from March 25 onwards, all relevant material such as submissions, decisions and attachments brought before cabinet and where a final decision has been made will be made public after 30 days.
The scheme permits some reasonable exclusions to public release, and is guided by a handbook with criteria for the redaction of sensitive information.
Among the release was the state government’s final implementation report for its QPS integrity reform taskforce.
The state government also published ‘Our Place: A First Nations Housing and Homelessness Roadmap to 2031 and Action Plan 2024-2027’.
“Documents released today outline the final implementation report for the integrity reform taskforce, and the First Nations Housing and Homelessness Roadmap announced earlier this month,” Miles said.
The premier also thanked the team who set up the proactive release scheme “for their ongoing efforts to ensure documents are published promptly.”
Any cabinet material that is deemed “out of scope” for proactive release will remain subject to a 20-year restricted access period as per the Right to Information Act 2009.
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