191Secrecy

191 Secrecy

(1) This section applies to a person: (a) who is or has been an Indigenous Business Australia Director or acting Indigenous Business Australia Director; (b) who is or has been the Indigenous Business Australia Chief Executive Officer or an acting Indigenous Business Australia Chief Executive Officer; (c) who is or has been employed or engaged under section 175 or 178; (d) who is performing, or who has performed, duties on behalf of Indigenous Business Australia pursuant to an arrangement under section 176; or (e) whose services are being or have been made available to Indigenous Business Australia pursuant to an arrangement under section 177. (2) Subject to this section, a person to whom this section applies shall not, either directly or indirectly, except for the purposes of this Act, or of a prosecution for an offence against this Act: (a) make a record of, or divulge or communicate to any person, any information concerning the affairs of another person acquired by the first‑mentioned person in the performance of duties for the purposes of this Act; or (b) produce to any person a document relating to the affairs of another person furnished for the purposes of this Act.

Penalty: 50 penalty units.

Exception—housing or business loans (2A) It is a defence to a prosecution for contravening subsection (2), if: (a) in relation to a prosecution for divulging information to a person or body: (i) the information relates either to a housing loan or a business loan made, or treated as having been made, by Indigenous Business Australia or to a grant made, or treated as having been made, by Indigenous Business Australia, in relation to a housing loan or a business loan; and (ii) the information was communicated to a person authorised in writing by the person to whose affairs the document relates to receive the information; or (b) in relation to a prosecution for producing a document to a person or body: (i) the document relates either to a housing loan or a business loan made, or treated as having been made, by Indigenous Business Australia or to a grant made, or treated as having been made, by Indigenous Business Australia, in relation to a housing loan or a business loan; and (ii) the document was produced to a person authorised in writing by the person to whose affairs the document relates to receive the document.

Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection (2A) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).

Exception—Indigenous Business Australia Chief Executive Officer (2B) Despite subsection (2), the Indigenous Business Australia Chief Executive Officer may divulge or communicate information, or produce a document, to the Secretary of the Department for the purposes of the Department.