Cabinet and ministerial coordination
The Cabinet and Ministerial Coordination Branch is responsible for a range of strategic coordination functions, which underpin engagement by the Attorney-General, the Minister for Home Affairs and the Department in Cabinet and parliamentary processes and Ministerial Councils, as well as support for the Ministers and their offices more generally, and the Department's Freedom of Information (FOI) functions.
Cabinet Coordination Section
The Cabinet Coordination Section (CCS) provides advice, quality control, coordination and liaison services in relation to the Attorney-General’s Department’s Cabinet programs, including committees of Cabinet and Community Cabinet. CCS manages the process of providing the Attorney-General with written and oral briefings for participation in meetings, and monitors the implementation of Cabinet decisions.
The Section is also responsible for monitoring the recording of senior appointments to portfolio agencies and authorities.
Ministerial and Parliamentary Support Section
The Ministerial and Parliamentary Support Section is responsible for matters relating to the operations of and support to the Ministers’ offices; Ministerial and departmental travel; briefings for the Attorney-General and the Minister, tabling of parliamentary documents and coordination of matters which involve more than one area of the Department and/or portfolio agencies.
The Section also manages complaints handling process, for more information please visit the Making a complaint page.
Freedom of Information and Privacy Section
The FOI and Privacy Section is responsible for the processing of all FOI requests made to the Department and the provision of general FOI advice. This includes the making, in consultation with the relevant line areas, of decisions as to what material should be released. The Section is also responsible for representing the Department before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) in appeals brought against Departmental decisions. At times, officers also represent the Department in Federal Court appeals—and when appropriate, instruct Australian Government Solicitor (AGS) to do so.
The Section is also responsible for the provision of in-house legal advice within the Department on the operation of the Privacy Act 1988 and the Information Privacy Principles made pursuant to it. The advice of the Section should, therefore, be sought before any personal information is collected, used or disclosed by the Department. It should also be sought in relation to privacy issues generally and in particular, where the development of policy has potential privacy implications.
It also handles complaints of privacy breaches made against the Department and, where necessary, liaises with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner in relation to such matters.
Standing Committee of Attorneys-General (SCAG) Section
The SCAG section coordinates and manages the Commonwealth’s involvement in SCAG. This includes providing advice to Departmental officers on the management of individual agenda items and liaising with State/Territory counterparts.
Members of the SCAG Section attend the SCAG Officers’ meetings and assist the Attorney-General and the Minister for Home Affairs during the SCAG meeting. The SCAG section also coordinates the Secretary’s involvement in the National Justice Chief Executive Officers’ (NJCEOs) Group.
The SCAG Section is also responsible for oversight more generally for the Commonwealth’s engagement in Ministerial Councils.