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Review of the Public Records Act 2002

The Public Records Act 2002 (the Act) is being reviewed to ensure the legislative framework supports the contemporary management and preservation of digital records and emerging technology impacts on public authorities.  The review will also contribute to the examination of culture and accountability in the public sector through consideration of recordkeeping practices that support good governance and decision making by government.

The independent review is led by retired Supreme Court Judge, the Honourable John Byrne AO RFD, supported by a panel of experts, and guided by Terms of Reference (PDF, 161.56 KB).

The Act establishes the Queensland State Archives and ensures public records are made, managed, kept and preserved for current and future generations. It ensures that public access to records is consistent with the principles of the Right to Information Act 2009 and the Information Privacy Act 2009. It applies to an estimated 500 government agencies.

The Act has not been reviewed since it commenced in 2002. We aim to ensure it:

  • remains relevant
  • meets community expectations
  • supports our governance and decision-making processes
  • delivers public information and record management best practices.

A range of public and stakeholder consultation activities were undertaken between 1 and 30 June 2022 to seek people’s views on the Act. Consultation has now closed and the panel will submit a final report in August 2022.

Independent review panel members

  • Chair: The Honourable John Byrne AO RFD

    Discipline: Law

    The Honourable John Byrne AO RFD graduated in Arts and in Law at the University of Queensland. In 1973, the University of Michigan awarded him the degree of Master of Laws.

    John started as a barrister in 1974. Practising mainly in commercial cases, he became Queen’s Counsel in 1982.

    In 1989, aged 40, John was appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland.

    In 2007, he was appointed, as Senior Judge Administrator, to head the Trial Division of the Supreme Court.

    John has been President of the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration and has chaired the governing Council of the National Judicial College of Australia.

    In 2013, he was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to the judiciary and to the law.

    John left the Queensland Supreme Court in 2017. He now resolves commercial disputes outside the courtroom, mainly as a mediator.

  • Professor Bronwyn Fredericks

    Discipline: Education, Health, Indigenous Studies

    Bronwyn Fredericks is a Professor and the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Engagement) at the University of Queensland (UQ, Australia) where she has worked for four years. Prior to this she was in a similar role at CQUniversity. Bronwyn was appointed as the Presiding Commissioner with the Queensland Productivity Commission (QPC) to lead the Inquiry into service delivery in Queensland’s remote and discrete Indigenous communities (2016), the Inquiry into Imprisonment and Recidivism in Queensland (2019) and the Manufacturing Inquiry, along with the Queensland Recycling Review (2019).

    Bronwyn has worked for both state and federal levels of government and has a long history of direct hands-on involvement in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-based organisations and broader community organisations spanning over 30 years. She is currently a Director of the Queensland Council of Social Service (QCOSS), and an affiliate with UQ’s Poche Centre for Indigenous Health.

    Bronwyn has lived in and out of Central Queensland for over 25 years and holds numerous formal qualifications in education, and health.

  • Mr David Fricker CdOAL GAICD

    Discipline: Archival regulatory frameworks

    David was appointed President of the ICA in October 2014, and will complete his second term in September 2022. Since 2015 he has been a Vice-Chair of the UNESCO Memory of the World International Advisory Committee.

    He held the office of Director-General of the National Archives of Australia for ten years, from January 2012.  In this role, his focus was the whole-of-government transition to ‘digital continuity’ in records and information management; expansion of preservation capability for paper, audio-visual and digital records; acceleration of the declassification of sensitive archival documents; and the exploitation of emerging technology to enhance the public’s access to archival resources.  As the principal policy-maker for Federal government records and information management practices, David has been an outspoken and influential champion of public administration based on transparency, integrity and accountability.

    He is a professional member of the Australian Society of Archivists, and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.  In 2015 he was made Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres) by the Republic of France.

  • Adjunct Professor Linda O’Brien

    Discipline: Information systems, data management

    Linda is currently Adjunct Professor within Griffith Business School’s Department of Business Strategy and Innovation. She was the formerly the Pro Vice Chancellor Information Services and University Librarian at Griffith University and a former member of the Queensland State Archives’ Public Records Review Committee. Linda brings a wealth of knowledge in digital stewardship, information systems, data management, open data, and government relations. Linda is a former Director of the Open Data Institute of Queensland, current Chair of the ORCID Board, Deputy Chair of the Infoxchange Board and a Director of the Queensland CyberInfrastructure Foundation.

  • Dr Katie McConnel

    Discipline: Queensland history and cultural heritage

    Katie is an historian and the Curator of Old Government House at the Queensland University of Technology. She has a research background in local heritage and regional history and extensive knowledge of Queensland’s history and cultural heritage, and First Nations records within archival collections. Katie is a Member of the Queensland Heritage Council and has nearly 25 years’ experience in the university and museum sectors.

Last updated: 
1 July 2022