New South Wales Consolidated Acts

CRIMES (ADMINISTRATION OF SENTENCES) ACT 1999 - SECT 257A

257A Authority to disclose and exchange certain information

(1) The Commissioner may disclose information obtained by the Commissioner, or to which the Commissioner otherwise has or had access, in connection with the exercise of his or her official functions under this or any other Act for any purpose prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this subsection.

(2) The Commissioner may enter into an arrangement (an
"information sharing arrangement" ) with the head of a relevant agency for the purpose of sharing or exchanging information that is held by Corrective Services NSW or the relevant agency.

(3) Under an information sharing arrangement, each party to the arrangement is authorised--

(a) to request and receive prescribed information that is held by the other party to the arrangement, and

(b) to disclose prescribed information that is held by the party to the other party to the arrangement.

(4) In this section--

"prescribed information" means information of a kind prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of subsection (3) (a) or (b).

"relevant agency" means--

(a) a law enforcement agency, or

(a1) an intelligence agency of an Australian jurisdiction, or

(b) a government agency of a State or Territory that corresponds with Corrective Services NSW, or

(c) a person or body prescribed by the regulations as a relevant agency.

(5) A regulation made under this section extends to information obtained before the commencement of the regulation unless the regulation otherwise provides.

(5A) The disclosure, sharing and exchange of information in accordance with subsection (1) or under an information sharing arrangement must comply with any conditions prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this section.

(6) The power to prescribe a purpose for the purposes of subsection (1) does not imply that the Commissioner may disclose information only for a purpose so prescribed.

(7) The authority to disclose, request or receive information under this section applies despite the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 and the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 .

(8) The Minister is to consult with the Minister for Health before recommending the making of a regulation under subsection (1) that may result in the disclosure or use of health information (within the meaning of the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 ).

(9) A failure to comply with subsection (8) does not affect the validity of a regulation.