| (a) | if the record contains— |
| (i) | an opinion, advice, report or recommendation obtained or prepared; or |
| (ii) | an account of a consultation, discussion or deliberation that has occurred, including, but not limited to, minutes of a meeting, |
for the purpose of assisting to formulate a policy or take a decision in the exercise of a power or performance of a duty conferred or imposed by law; or
| (i) | the disclosure of the record could reasonably be expected to frustrate the deliberative process in a public body or between public bodies by inhibiting the candid— |
| (aa) | communication of an opinion, advice, report or recommendation; or |
| (bb) | conduct of a consultation, discussion or deliberation; or |
| (ii) | the disclosure of the record could, by premature disclosure of a policy or contemplated policy, reasonably be expected to frustrate the success of that policy. |
| (2) | Subject to subsection (4), the information officer of a public body may refuse a request for access to a record of the body if— |
| (a) | the disclosure of the record could reasonably be expected to jeopardise the effectiveness of a testing, examining or auditing procedure or method used by a public body; |
| (b) | the record contains evaluative material, whether or not the person who supplied it is identified in the record, and the disclosure of the material would breach an express or implied promise which was— |
| (i) | made to the person who supplied the material; and |
| (ii) | to the effect that the material or the identity of the person who supplied it, or both, would be held in confidence; or |
| (c) | the record contains a preliminary, working or other draft of an official of a public body. |
| (3) | A record may not be refused in terms of subsection (1) if the record came into existence more than 20 years before the request concerned. |
| (4) | A record may not be refused in terms of subsection (1) or (2) insofar as it consists of an account or a statement of reasons required to be given in accordance with section 5 of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000. |
[Section 44(4) substituted by section 36 of Act No. 42 of 2001]
