C2018-07 Use of Publicly Available Government Material by Political Parties

Government resources should not be used in a manner to advantage a particular political party. For detailed guidance, see M2018-01 State Election – Caretaker Conventions.

Use of NSW Government information generally

The NSW Government supports and encourages the reuse of its publicly funded information, and endorses the use of the Australian Governments Open Access and Licensing Framework. Where material on a NSW Government website is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence, it may be used by any person provided that:

• appropriate credit is given to the NSW Government agency by including the name of the agency and acknowledging the agency as the source of the material
• any modifications to the material are made clear, and
• there is no suggestion that the NSW Government endorses the user or its use.

Permitted uses of material under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence include to:

• share – copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format, and
• adapt – remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

Further information on the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence is available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Before any person reuses material available on a NSW Government website the terms and conditions for use of the material should be reviewed. These can usually be found under the copyright or disclaimer notice on the relevant website.

Reuse of material on a NSW Government website by political parties

Material on a NSW Government website can only be used by political parties if the copyright and licensing arrangements permit its reuse by any person. The terms and conditions of reuse must be complied with.

Any reuse of publicly available NSW Government material should be done in a manner that does not suggest that the NSW Government endorses:

• the political party, or
• the use of the material by the political party.

Reuse of publicly available NSW Government material during the caretaker period

Special arrangements apply in the period immediately before a State general election. During the caretaker period, agencies should be especially vigilant to protect the political neutrality of the public service and to ensure that public resources are not misused for party political purposes.

In the lead up to the State general election, agencies should review their websites to ensure that appropriate copyright notices are in place.

Agencies must not give one political party access to material that would not be given to another political party.