VPRS 12842 Secretary's Briefings to the Premier

This series comprised correspondence between the Secretary to the Department of the Premier and Cabinet and the Premier. Its purpose appears to have been to provide confidential briefing to the Premier. Records in the series dealt with a wide range of matters such as high-level policy, senior appointments, Council of Australian Governments and other high-level meetings, further briefings on matters raised at Cabinet, and administration of activities undertaken by senior officers of the Departments of the Premier and Cabinet and Treasury and Finance.The series appears to have commenced in 1992, with the election of the Kennett government and the appointment of Ken Baxter as the Secretary of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet. The records appear to have been kept in the office of the Secretary.Records in this series generally took the form of memoranda from the Secretary to the Premier, with the Premier's responses comprising either had written annotations to the original memoranda or more formal memoranda. Memoranda from Secretary were written under either of two letterheads, "Department of Premier and Cabinet" or "Department of Premier and Cabinet: from the Secretary." Where the Premier prepared a formal reply, it was under the letterhead of the Office of the Premier.The P0001 consignment comprises records created under the Kennett governments, October 1992 to 1999. How previous and subsequent premiers were briefed is subject to research. The records in the P0001 consignment were found with the file in the P0002 consignment of VPRS 12549 General Correspondence Files, Multiple Number System III, which had been top numbered from VPRS 8197 General Correspondence Files, Multiple Number System II. The relationship between VPRS 12842 and the two series of general correspondence files is subject to research.

本档案系列包含州总理与内阁部（Department of the Premier and Cabinet）秘书与州总理之间的往来函件，其设立初衷为向州总理提供机密简报。系列收录档案涉及广泛高层事务，涵盖高级政策制定、高级人事任命、澳大利亚政府委员会（Council of Australian Governments）及其他高层会议、内阁会议相关补充简报，以及州总理与内阁部、财政与财务部高级官员履职活动的管理工作。该系列始自1992年，时值肯尼特政府当选，肯·巴克斯特（Ken Baxter）就任州总理与内阁部秘书。相关档案据称留存于秘书办公室。本系列档案多以秘书致州总理的备忘录形式呈现，州总理的回复主要分为两类：一是对原始备忘录的手写批注，二是格式更为正式的回复备忘录。秘书所发备忘录可使用两种信头："Department of the Premier and Cabinet" 或 "Department of the Premier and Cabinet: from the Secretary"。若州总理出具正式回复，则采用州总理办公室（Office of the Premier）的信头。P0001移交批次包含1992年10月至1999年肯尼特政府任期内产生的全部档案。前任及后续州总理的简报方式仍有待研究考证。P0001批次的档案与VPRS 12549《多编号系统Ⅲ通用信函档案》的P0002批次档案一同被发现，而VPRS 12549系列源自VPRS 8197《多编号系统Ⅱ通用信函档案》。VPRS 12842与上述两类通用信函档案系列之间的关联仍有待进一步研究厘清。