31HConfidentiality

31H Confidentiality

31H Confidentiality

(1) If any evidence proposed to be given before, or the whole or a part of a document produced or proposed to be produced to, the Joint Committee relates to a secret or confidential matter, the Committee may, and at the request of the witness giving the evidence or the person producing the document must—

(a) take the evidence in private, or

(b) direct that the document, or the part of the document, be treated as confidential.

(1A) If any evidence proposed to be given before, or the whole or a part of a document produced or proposed to be produced in evidence to, the Joint Committee relates to the proposed appointment of a person as Ombudsman, Director of Public Prosecutions, Information Commissioner, Privacy Commissioner, Chief or other Commissioner of the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission or Inspector of the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission, Commissioner for the New South Wales Crime Commission or Inspector of Custodial Services, the Committee must (despite any other provision of this section)—

(a) take the evidence in private, or

(b) direct that the document, or the part of the document, be treated as confidential.

(1B) Despite any other provision of this section except subsection (6), the Joint Committee must not, and a person (including a member of the Committee) must not, disclose any evidence or the contents of a document or that part of a document to which subsection (1A) applies.

Maximum penalty—20 penalty units or imprisonment for 3 months, or both.

(1C) Despite any other provision of this section except subsection (6), the Joint Committee (including a member of the Committee) must not, and any person assisting the Committee or present during the deliberations of the Committee must not, except in accordance with section 31BA (3), disclose whether or not the Joint Committee or any member of the Joint Committee has vetoed, or proposes to veto, the proposed appointment of a person as Ombudsman, Director of Public Prosecutions, Information Commissioner, Privacy Commissioner, Chief or other Commissioner of the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission or Inspector of the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission, Commissioner for the New South Wales Crime Commission or Inspector of Custodial Services.

Maximum penalty—20 penalty units or imprisonment for 3 months, or both.

(2) If a direction under subsection (1) applies to a document or part of a document produced to the Joint Committee—