No decision will come from the information gathering interview. It is meant to gather information about the claim and to prepare the claim for the first-level hearing. Some recommendations can be made from that information gathering interview, such as how the claim will be scheduled and streamed, but there are no decisions that require counsel to be present.
But the asylum claimant does have the right to have counsel present. They may have counsel present. The counsel would not have a participatory role. But the interview would not be adjourned in order to have counsel represented there, because no decision will emanate from that interview.
So that's distinct from the first-level hearing, where an actual first level decision is made on the claim itself. That is really the determinative hearing. The hearing will take a look at the information gathered from the interview, as well as any subsequent information that has been gathered since by the claimant, in cooperation with counsel, should he wish. That will constitute the first level decision on the merits of the claim put forward by the claimant.