I love the OIA

Have just received this response from Television New Zealand in response to an OIA request I made:

Dear Mr Farrar

OFFICIAL INFORMATION ACT REQUEST

I refer to your request under the Act dated 8 April 2010.

Following an exhaustive search, and enquiries to the usual suspects, it appears that only one pair of pink handcuffs was purchased by Television New Zealand during the period of 1 March to 7 April 2010.

As I am sure you are aware, the handcuffs were purchased as a novelty prize for Back Benches. They were purchased from an undisclosed location in Wellington, and cost $24.99. I cannot confirm whether this represents a fair market price, or whether we paid over the odds for them.

Yours sincerely

Brent McAnulty
General Counsel/Company Secretary

I am intrigued by the reference to “the usual suspects”. Does Damien Christie make a habit of purchasing such items for TVNZ?