Do as we say...

and not as we do.

That seems to be the motto of the Ministry of Justice... Note the part that says "20 working days"...

I find it more than a little ironic that the government department charged with upholding law and justice seem to ignore it...

The Privacy Act 1993 states that an organisation has 20 working days to respond to your request, and if they cannot comply within that timeframe they are supposed to advise you, in writing, of the delay, how long they expect it to take and the reasons for it within the 20 day period. They even say this on their website!

But they have done neither and when I called them, they fobbed me off with some sob story about how its 20 working days, so you don't count weekends/public holidays, and that they're all snowed under since they got back from Xmas/New Years break... cry me a river.

When I pointed out that I have been waiting for around 25 days and I have not received either my requested history or a note detailing the delay, I was told they are only just processing requests from January 7th! So I asked if there was any way to check they had even received my application... "No, we don't send out confirmations"... Awesome, so given that 20 days has passed and I've had nothing and you wont even tell me whether you even got my application... how long should I wait now? 30 days? 40 days? Christmas?

*sigh*... I really should know better than to try and use logic and reasoning where government departments are concerned... still, I think I might send a note to the privacy commissioner expressing my disappointment with the Ministry of Justice...

Without the criminal history (which is empty btw), I am unable to complete the 'Fit and Proper Person' declaration which means I cannot get my PPL issued... grrrrrrrr

I hate paperwork and bureaucracy.