169. The security and confidentiality of all Cabinet documents and information, including draft Cabinet documents, is critical to the integrity of the Cabinet system and the conventions of Cabinet confidentiality and collective responsibility.
170. All Cabinet documents carry a security classification of PROTECTED CABINET or higher and must be created, handled and stored in line with the requirements of the Cabinet Handbook, the PSPF and any other applicable legislation, policies and procedures. These requirements apply to ministers, their staff and officials.

Special nature of Cabinet documents and information

171. Cabinet documents are documents prepared for submission to Cabinet, or which deal with Cabinet meetings, including but not limited to:
     1. Cabinet Submissions, memoranda, and Preliminary Discussion Submissions 
        (Pre-Exposure Drafts, Exposure Drafts, Coordination Final, Final versions and corrigenda versions of these) as well as their attachments.
     2. Presentations made in the Cabinet room.
     3. Agendas for Cabinet meetings.
     4. Official records and minutes of the decisions of Cabinet and its committees.
     5. Central agency briefs submitted to accompany Cabinet submissions (e.g. Green Briefs on financial implications).
     6. Drafts of Cabinet Submissions, memoranda, Preliminary Discussion Submissions and records of the Cabinet or committee.
     7. Cabinet notebooks.
172. Information that reveals the deliberations or decisions of the Cabinet, including proposals or positions to be advanced in future Cabinet meetings, may appear in a range of other documents, including briefings, emails and written correspondence, such as correspondence seeking authority to bring forward a matter for consideration by the Cabinet. Such documents must be handled confidentially and in line with security procedures.
173. Cabinet documents must not be provided to sources external to government. However, it may be necessary to consult with external sources about matters the subject of Cabinet consideration to ensure Cabinet can make informed decisions.

Custody of Cabinet documents

174. A new series of Cabinet records is established for each government.
175. Cabinet documents are the property of the Commonwealth, held in the care and control of the Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and confidential to the government that created them. They are issued to ministers and departments on a need-to-know basis. They are not the property of the sponsoring minister or department.
176. Access to a former government’s Cabinet documents by succeeding governments is not granted without the approval of the current parliamentary leader of the appropriate political party.
177. Ministers and their staff should not seek from departments the Cabinet documents of the previous government, or the advice provided to it.
178. Cabinet records and Cabinet notebooks are accessible to the public when they enter the open access period under the Archives Act. The open access period is 20 years for Cabinet records and 30 years for Cabinet notebooks.
179. Under the Archives Act, former ministers and certain other former office holders may request access to Cabinet documents with which they dealt personally while in office that are not yet in the open access period.

Secure handling of Cabinet documents

180. Cabinet documents must be circulated via the CabNet+ system. CabNet+ maintains an auditable record of access to Cabinet documents.
181. Cabinet documents must not be copied. This includes no transcribing or copying of text of Cabinet documents (particularly minutes or the content of Cabinet notebooks) into departmental IT systems.
182. Circulation of Cabinet documents must be restricted to those officials who have a role in contributing to the issues in the document and who hold an appropriate security clearance.
183. These rules should be read together with periodic guidance issued by Cabinet Division via Cabinet Circulars on secure handling of Cabinet documents.

Unauthorised disclosure of Cabinet documents

184. Persons who access, disclose or discuss Cabinet material, including draft Cabinet documents, without authorisation undermine Cabinet confidentiality and collective ministerial responsibility.
185. Unauthorised or incorrect access to or release of Cabinet information may be a breach of the PSPF or the Public Service Act 1999, and may constitute a criminal offence under the Criminal Code Act 1995 or other Commonwealth legislation.
186. Departments and ministers’ offices must take appropriate steps to contain the unauthorised access or disclosure of Cabinet information. Ministers’ offices and departments must also notify affected stakeholders, review arrangements for securing and handling Cabinet information, and report the suspected Cabinet information security breach and remedial steps taken to Cabinet Division.

Freedom of information laws and disclosure of Cabinet documents

187. The sensitivity and confidentiality of Cabinet documents is recognised in section 34 of the Freedom of Information Act, which provides an exemption from disclosure for Cabinet documents and information.
188. Cabinet confidentiality is also a well-established ground to make a public interest immunity claim where disclosure of Cabinet documents has been sought in legal proceedings or in the Parliament.
189. Where access to Cabinet material has been requested under the Freedom of Information Act or production is otherwise sought, departments should consult with Cabinet Division as the custodian of the official records of Cabinet and managers of Cabinet process.