Housing Agency claims releasing defective block homeowners’ information could endanger lives
The Housing Agency won’t release records to at least 13 homeowners affected by the defective block crisis because the publication of these records, the agency claims, could “endanger the life or safety” of Housing Agency staff.
The withheld records include internal communications and minutes of meetings between agency officials and the engineering companies contracted to assess damaged homes. The homeowners seeking these documents have been subjected to downgraded grant offers for repair work to their homes built with defective blocks.
"Our homes have been downgraded from full demolition to cheaper, partial fixes. These decisions defy basic engineering principles and ignore scientific research," said one homeowner affected by the decision. "These are our homes and this information concerning our homes should not be withheld."
The Ditch has examined one such case where a meeting between Housing Agency officials and an engineering company – involved in a contested decision to downgrade a grant – wasn’t even listed in the agency's official index of documents.
The homeowner only discovered the meeting's existence after finding a reference to it in a released email the Housing Agency now refuses to release the minutes, citing section 32 (1) (b). This provides for the right to refuse release when to do so would “endanger the life or safety of any person”.
Housing Agency cites safety concerns
In one case reviewed by The Ditch the Housing Agency initially refused to release meeting minutes, claiming that disclosure would constitute releasing personal information about an individual.
After an internal review it acknowledged this exemption was incorrectly applied.
The agency switched to a different justification for refusing to release the records, citing exemption 32(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information Act, now claiming that releasing the information "could pose a risk to the safety of the individuals concerned”.
In correspondence to the homeowner, a Housing Agency staff member cited five factors to justify withholding the documents, including what they describe as "an escalating pattern of hostility" in communications from defective homeowners directed towards agency staff.
The homeowner had specifically sought the minutes of a 10 April meeting, involving engineering company DBFL Consulting Engineers, to understand how her case progressed from an initial recommendation of full demolition to a cheaper repair option after the Housing Agency's intervention.
"This information is imperative to me,” said the homeowner in trying to understand how their application was downgraded not once but twice – the second downgrade coming after the meeting between Housing Agency officials and DBFL.
Last year The Ditch reported that a Housing Agency official had suggested DBFL downgrade their assessment of a property after withholding evidence of severe structural damage that warranted the highest level of redress available.
The Housing Agency told homeowners that while the Freedom of Information Act promotes transparency and accountability, releasing the minutes "would not significantly advance the public's understanding of the agency's operations beyond what is already publicly available."
A spokesperson for the Housing Agency said, “The Housing Agency has unfortunately received a number of communications that have been highly inappropriate which were directed towards our staff. We take these matters very seriously and are supporting the staff members concerned. We have no further comment at this time."