Northern Territory Consolidated Acts

OMBUDSMAN (NORTHERN TERRITORY) ACT - SECT 3

(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

administrative action means an action relating to a matter of administration, and includes:

(a) a decision or an act;

(b) the failure or refusal to take a decision or to perform an act;

(c) the formulation of a proposal or intention; and

(d) the making of a recommendation (including a recommendation made to the Administrator or to a Minister),

but does not include:

(e) any such action of or by a person while discharging or purporting to discharge a responsibility of a judicial nature;

(ea) any such action of:

(i) a coroner, within the meaning of the Coroners Act , while discharging or purporting to discharge a responsibility relating to an inquest or inquiry under that Act; or

(ii) a magistrate or Justice while discharging or purporting to discharge a responsibility relating to a preliminary examination under Part V of the Justices Act ;

(eb) any such action (not amounting to inordinate delay) of or by the Director of Public Prosecutions under the Director of Public Prosecutions Act relating to:

(i) the instituting and conducting of, or participation in or assistance with matters relating to, judicial proceedings, including such proceedings outside of the Territory;

(ii) the granting of immunity from prosecution;

(iii) an extradition;

(iv) the recovery of penalties or the enforcement of forfeitures;

(v) the issuing and contents of guidelines relating to prosecutions for offences;

(vi) the limiting of the powers of other officials; and

(vii) the investigation of offences;

(ec) any such action (not amounting to inordinate delay) relating to an application to or decision of a consent authority under the Planning Act from which decision an appeal to the Appeals Tribunal under that Act would lie, the procedure in relation to the hearing of such an appeal, and the resulting decision of the Tribunal;

(ed) any such action (not amounting to inordinate delay) relating to a decision of the Northern Territory Licensing Commission established by section 4 of the Northern Territory Licensing Commission Act as a result of which an application or request for a hearing under Part V of the Liquor Act may be made, the procedure in relation to any such hearing, and the resulting decision of the Commission;

(ee) any such action (not amounting to inordinate delay) of or by the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner appointed under the Anti-Discrimination Act in relation to a complaint of prohibited conduct under that Act;

(f) any such action of or by a person acting as counsel or legal adviser to the Crown or to a Minister in his capacity as such;

(g) any such action taken by a person or body with respect to a person employed in the service of a department or authority, being an action taken in relation to that employment, including action taken with respect to the promotion, termination of employment or discipline of a person so employed or the payment of remuneration to such a person; or

(h) any such action taken by the Parole Board of the Northern Territory.

authority means a person or body:

(a) that is an Agency as defined in the Public Sector Employment and Management Act;

(b) whether incorporated or unincorporated, that is constituted or established for a public purpose by or under a law of the Territory, not being a body which is a prescribed authority within the meaning of the Ombudsman Act 1976 of the Commonwealth;

(c) that is a local government council; or

(d) in respect of whom or which a declaration has been made by the Administrator under subsection (2).

complainant means the person or body who or which makes a complaint under this Act and includes the person or body aggrieved where the complaint is not made by the person or body aggrieved.

department means an Agency as defined in the Public Sector Employment and Management Act , and includes the Police Force of the Northern Territory, but does not include:

(a) the Legislative Assembly; or

(b) the Executive Council.

Executive Council means the Executive Council of the Northern Territory of Australia.

Information Commissioner means the Information Commissioner under the Information Act .

local government council means a council constituted under the Local Government Act .

officer , in relation to a department or an authority that is an agency as defined in the Public Sector Employment and Management Act , includes an employee as defined in that Act.

Ombudsman means the person holding the office of the Ombudsman for the Northern Territory, and includes an acting Ombudsman.

presiding member , in relation to a local government council, means the mayor, president, chairman or person, by whatever name called, presiding over the council, and includes the deputy to the presiding member.

principal officer :

(a) in relation to a department means the Chief Executive Officer, within the meaning of the Public Sector Employment and Management Act , of the department;

(b) in relation to an authority, not being a local government council or an Agency, means the Chairman or presiding member for the time being of the authority; and

(c) in relation to a local government council, means the person for the time being holding or acting in or performing the duties of clerk of the council.

responsible Minister means:

(a) where the term is used in relation to a department, the Minister who, in the opinion of the Ombudsman, has the direction of the activities of that department; or

(b) where the term is used in relation to an authority, the Minister who, in the opinion of the Ombudsman, administers the provisions of the Act by or under which that authority is constituted or established or, if that authority is not constituted or established by or under an Act, the Minister who, in the opinion of the Ombudsman, is the appropriate minister in relation to that authority,

and includes a Minister for the time being acting for and on behalf of the responsible Minister.

tribunal includes the person constituting a tribunal consisting of one person.

(2) The Administrator may, by notice in the Gazette , declare a person or body, whether incorporated or unincorporated, to be an authority for the purposes of this Act either generally or in respect of specified administrative actions or actions of a specified class of administrative action, or in respect of administrative actions other than specified administrative actions or actions of a specified class of administrative action.

(3) For the purposes of this Act:

(a) references to a department or an authority shall be construed as including references to the principal officer and other officers, members, and employees thereof;

(b) references to an officer of an authority shall be construed as including references to an officer appointed by or to that authority under any law in force in the Territory;

(c) references to a member of an authority shall be construed as including references to the person for the time being holding or acting in or performing the duties of any office or designation created or established by or under a law in force in the Territory, or in a department, who by virtue of his holding that office is a member of that authority; and

(d) references to an administrative action taken by, in or on behalf of a department or authority shall be construed as including references to action taken by any officer, member or employee thereof or any other person in or acting on behalf of the department or authority in the exercise or performance of any power or function conferred on him, whether pursuant to any law in force in the Territory or otherwise.

(4) For the purpose of this Act, an action taken by an officer of a department or authority shall be deemed to be taken by the department or authority if the officer takes or purports to take the action:

(a) by virtue of his being an officer of the department or authority, whether or not:

(i) the action is taken for or in connection with or is incidental to the performance of the functions of the department or authority; or

(ii) the taking of the action is within the duties of the officer; or

(b) in the exercise of a power or the performance of a function conferred on him by or under a law in force in the Territory.