South Australian Current Acts South Australian Current Acts (1) The Ombudsman may,
on receipt of a complaint, carry out an investigation under this section if it
appears to the Ombudsman that a council may have unreasonably excluded members
of the public from its meetings under Part 3 or unreasonably prevented access
to documents under Part 4.
(2) The Ombudsman may,
in carrying out an investigation under this section, exercise the powers of
the Ombudsman under the Ombudsman Act 1972 as if carrying out an
investigation under that Act.
(3) At the conclusion
of an investigation under this section, the Ombudsman must prepare a written
report on the matter.
(4) The Ombudsman must
supply the Minister and the council with a copy of the report, and may also
publish the report, a part of the report, or a summary of the report, in such
manner as the Ombudsman thinks fit.
(5) If the Minister,
after taking into account the report of the Ombudsman under this section,
believes that the council has unreasonably excluded members of the public from
its meetings under Part 3 or unreasonably prevented access to documents under
Part 4, the Minister may give directions to the council with respect to the
future exercise of its powers under either or both of those sections, or to
release information that should, in the opinion of the Minister, be available
to the public.
(6) The Minister must,
before taking action under subsection (5), give the council a reasonable
opportunity to make submissions to the Minister in relation to the matter.
(7) A council must
comply with a direction under subsection (5).
(7a) The Minister may
also publish the report, a part of the report, or a summary of the report, in
such manner as the Minister thinks fit.
(8) This section does
not limit other powers of investigation under other provisions of this or
another Act.