New post; old business: Nova Scotia "Right to Know" Week Forum (September 28, 2010 University of Kings College, Halifax)

A forum initiated by the Canadian Association of Professional Access and Privacy Administrators with the active support of our Coalition and the blessing of the independent FOI Review Office was held September 28, 2010 at King's College, Alumni Hall.

The main speaker was Fred Vallance-Jones, a professor at King's Journalism School and author of the annual freedom of information audit by the Canadian Newspapers Association. He spoke, of course, about the audit.

This was followed by three panels organized by the coalition which I moderated. The first offered the Nova Scotia Government Freedom of Information Administrator and a former DM Justice an opportunity to speak to the government's approach to the provincial Freedom of Information Act.

Two members of the legislature, one from the government caucus and the other from the opposition Liberal caucus were the second panel. The government rep., of course, was expected to defend the government's openness and accountability. The one-year-old NDP government, while in opposition, was a devoted supporter of the FOI Act, and used it often and effectively. Not so much devoted in government... no surprise to anyone. The Liberal rep. was a new MLA, just 26 years old. Both politicians were reasonable and polite and intelligent..The young Liberal used to be a student in the government member's pol-sci class.

The last panel was made up of three seasoned journalists, all of whom are users of the FOI Act in their efforts to wrest information from the government.  They were joined by a young woman, a recent graduate of King's J-School.  The journalists' panel was predictably and particularly critical of government's lack of enthusiasm for the FOI Act. Questions from the audience, several of whom were government FOI administrators not exactly in accord with the views of the cranky journalists, continued until the lights dimmed.

Toby Mendel, the Executive Director of the new Halifax-based Centre for Law and Democracy and an expert in international access to information laws, compared, Canadian access legislation unfavourably with many of the other countries who have adopted right to know legislation. Toby, who travels frequently in other countries, is an enthusiastic and welcome new member of our coalition.

Organizing panels can be a tough job for a small, impecunious coalition the directors of which are busy, busy with jobs and families. The only unemployed member is the guy they elected President. Go figure!

Thanks for your interest and thanks to CAPAPA for spearheading the effort.


Darce Fardy
President
Right to Know Coalition of Nova Scotia
(902) 422-1481
darce@eastlink.ca
www.nsrighttoknow.ca

Related articles

• Nova Scotia "Right to Know" Week event on September 28, 2010 at Alumni Hall, University of Kings College (nsrtk.blogspot.com)
• SECRECY AND DEMOCRACY, a forum to be held on Tuesday, September 28 at 7 pm at Alumni Hall, King's College (nsrtk.blogspot.com)
• Freedom of Information in Nova Scotia (nsrtk.blogspot.com)

Commissionaires fight to keep finances secret

Image by mag3737 via Flickr

Commissionaires fight to keep finances secret

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

By Don Butler, The Ottawa Citizen

 

The Canadian Corps of Commissionaires wants the Federal Court  to block the release of records it's required to file to obtain  untendered government contracts worth hundreds of millions of  dollars.

The corps filed an application for judicial review after Public  Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) decided in January to  release 208 pages of audit records in response to an Access to  Information request from Securitas Canada Inc.

The corps is a not-for-profit corporation that employs many  military veterans and former members of the RCMP. If the records are  disclosed, it says it will suffer a "devastating loss" of business.

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/mobile/iphone/story.html?id=3553974

Publication No. 2010-14E Government 2.0 and Access to Information: 1. Recent Developments in Proactive Disclosure and Open Data in Canada (15 April 2010)

Publication No. 2010-14E

Government 2.0 and Access to Information: 1. Recent Developments in Proactive Disclosure and Open Data in Canada

Alysia Davies
Dara Lithwick
Legal and Legislative Affairs Division
Parliamentary Information and Research Service
Library of Parliament

15 April 2010

PDF (247 Kb, 12 pages)

---

Contents

• 1 Introduction
• 2 Municipal Governments
• 3 Provincial Governments
• 4 Federal Government
• Notes

---

1 Introduction

With the advent of new technologies that make document distribution on the Internet cheaper and easier than ever before, many governments are shifting to an “e-democracy” model of access to information. In addition to operating the traditional request-based system where a member of the public asks for a government document and receives a hard copy (or an electronic one), increasingly, governments are moving many of their documents and data online, where members of the public can search for material themselves.
This process is often referred to as “proactive disclosure.” It is one component of a larger initiative sometimes called “e-government,” “e-governance,” “e-participation,” or “open government,” whereby citizens are able not only to obtain electronic access to government documents and services, but also to interact with them and give feedback on matters ranging from individual service problems to statistics and policy.
Another term frequently used in this context is “Government 2.0,” which refers to the integration of new-generation digital media technologies into government structure and operations.1
Many municipal and local governments, including some in Canada, have started rolling out “open data” web portals that provide raw government data to the public. The governments of the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia all made major announcements regarding the launch of open data and other proactive disclosure initiatives in December 2009.2 Some countries, such as Mexico, India, Finland and New Zealand have had proactive disclosure systems in place for some time.3
This paper will provide examples of the proactive disclosure systems that are developing or already in place in Canada. A second paper in this series will look at the development of proactive disclosure systems in the United States and selected other countries.4

FULL PAPER: http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/ResearchPublications/2010-14-e.htm

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• Availability of Government Data (kauffman.org)
• We're in open government's beta period (radar.oreilly.com)

Opposition undeterred by Tory refusal to hand over emails

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Opposition undeterred by Tory refusal to hand over emails

Gloria Galloway

Ottawa

From Monday's Globe and Mail Published on Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010 9:11PM EDT

The federal government's refusal to give a Commons committee the e-mail records of a Conservative staff member has not deterred opposition members who say they will fight to get the documents into their hands.
Conservative House Leader John Baird wrote last week to the clerk of the opposition-dominated Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics committee to say the government would "not be acceding" to the committee's demand for the electronic correspondence of a political aide who blocked the release of an Access to Information request.

Mr. Baird defended the decision, saying cabinet ministers, and not their staff, are responsible to Parliament. More than that, said Mr. Baird, parliamentary and constitution convention dictates that the political communications related to decisions and actions of cabinet ministers are never disclosed.

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/opposition-undeterred-by-governments-refusal-to-hand-over-emails/article1689506/

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#FOI4U: FOI Requests Reveals That Federal budget cuts compromise weather data

Federal budget cuts compromise weather data, report warns

Loss affects monitoring of global warming

By Mike De Souza,
Postmedia News
August 22, 2010



The NDP's promise to axe the carbon tax has not gone over well with environmentalists concerned about climate change.Photograph by: Paul J. Richards, Getty Images filesOTTAWA — Sustained cuts to Environment Canada weather-service programs have compromised the government’s ability to assess climate change and left it with a “profoundly disturbing” quality of information in its data network, says an internal government report.



The stinging assessment, obtained through a freedom-of-information request, suggests Canada’s climate network infrastructure is getting progressively worse and no longer meets international guidelines.

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.vancouversun.com/story_print.html?id=3430204&sponsor=

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Better oversight will serve police as well as public - TheChronicleHerald.ca

Better oversight will serve police as well as public - TheChronicleHerald.ca - TheChronicleHerald.ca


... via email communication between the RCMP and Halifax police that was obtained by the Wagmatcook band in response to an access-to-information request. ...

What FOI Told you today: Fourteen Manitoba prisoners have been released from jail by mistake since the beginning of 2007

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Prisoners accidentally freed


By PAUL TURENNE, Winnipeg Sun



Last Updated: June 7, 2010 1:44pm


Fourteen Manitoba prisoners have been released from jail by mistake since the beginning of 2007, according to statistics obtained by the Opposition Tories.



The Tories released figures Monday that they received from Manitoba Justice through an access to information request related to accidental releases from custody.



The figures show that three people have been released from custody by mistake so far in 2010. Similar mistakes happened six times in 2009, twice in 2008, three times in 2007 and not once in 2006, according to the same document.

Full Article: http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/manitoba/2010/06/07/14294661.html

CBC's The Current Podcast: 04/02/10: Pt 3 - Accountability Act

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The Current Podcast

The Current is a meeting place of perspectives with a fresh take on issues that affect Canadians today.

04/02/10: Pt 3 - Accountability Act


Stephen Harper rode into office promising open, transparent and above all accountable government. Four years later, we're asking whether he's delivered it.

Right click to Download 04/02/10: Pt 3 - Accountability Act

[mp3 file: runs 28:21]

Music to Accompany Right to Know Week

Greetings from the west coast of Canada,

This request is sent to 154 groups and people from around the world who are interested in Freedom of Information.

Right To Know Week, the week to raise awareness about freedom of information, is approaching (Sept 28 to Oct 2). But to celebrate and raise awareness about freedom of information we need music!

Please take a minute or so to think of songs & music that usher in something of the spirit of freedom of information. Suggestions can be submitted here.

www.tinyurl.com/rtkmusic

Songs will be posted at www.opengovernmentrecords.net as they come in so that they can be used in Right to Know week celebrations.

Mark Weiler
Burnaby, BC
Canada

CNW Group | CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF JOURNALISTS | CAJ welcomes Nova Scotia move to restore lower FOI fees

CAJ welcomes Nova Scotia move to restore lower FOI fees

    OTTAWA, Aug. 14 /CNW/ - The Canadian Association of Journalists applauds
the new Nova Scotia NDP government for today slashing FOI request fees from
$25 to $5, setting them at the previous rate effective immediately.
   "We've called for just such a reduction for years," says CAJ President
Mary-Agnes Welch. "This will help all citizens ask vital questions to keep
Nova Scotia's government more accountable."

   The Canadian Association of Journalists is a non-profit professional
organization with more than 1,300 members across Canada. The CAJ's key roles
are to provide public-interest advocacy and high-quality professional
development for its members.

For further information: Fred Vallance-Jones, CAJ director, (902)
402-8202; John Dickins, CAJ executive director, (613) 868-5442

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2009/14/c5377.html

Province Cuts Freedom of Information Application Fee (DoJ Press Release)

Province Cuts Freedom of Information Application Fee

Image by kitonlove via Flickr

Department of Justice
August 14, 2009 12:56 PM

The province is making it easier and more affordable for Nova Scotians to access information about the government.

The application fee under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act is being reduced from $25.00 to $5.00 effective today, Aug. 14.

"The government is committed to being open and accountable to Nova Scotians," said Attorney General and Justice Minister Ross Landry. "Access to information needs to be affordable. This decrease will assist those people who may have found the fee too costly in the past.”

The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, implemented in 1994, provides Nova Scotians with access to most records under the control of the provincial government and protects the privacy of individuals who do not want their personal information made public. The act is designed to strike a balance between the public's right to know and the individual's right to privacy.

Last year, government received more than 950 applications for information on departments, agencies boards and commissions.

http://www.gov.ns.ca/news/details.asp?id=20090814003

Government secrecy expands Public's right to information under attack Dan Lett 14/05/2009 1:00 AM | The public's right to see government information can be a pain in the butt. Just ask British MPs, who are embroiled in a scandal over excessive expense claims. ... Back in Canada, both the former Liberal and current Conservative governments in Ottawa have been guilty of defying Access to Information law. For example, journalists and access-to-information advocates have for years sought the details of Jean Chrétien's appointment book, which was in high demand back in the days of Shawinigate. The Access to Information commissioner ordered the datebook released but PMO officials refused. After eight years of refusals, a federal court last year upheld the right of cabinet ministers to keep such information secret. Score one for the advocates of greater government secrecy. Even in Manitoba, the perversion of public access to information is alive and well. Earlier this month, the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority was exposed in the pages of this paper for concealing details of potentially harmful disease outbreaks in Winnipeg hospitals. The details of these outbreaks were only obtained after the Free Press was forced to file a Freedom of Information request. After the information was published, however, the WRHA agreed it should make the information available voluntarily. An authority spokeswoman claimed this would prevent "inaccurate and sometimes inflammatory information from other sources" making its way into the public realm. The WRHA should be ashamed for a number of reasons: for trying to keep that information concealed in the first place; for making journalists file a FOI request for information they now acknowledge should have been public; and for suggesting the media reports that forced them to do the right thing were inaccurate when there is not a shred of proof to back up the claim. The authors of access-to-information laws thought they were ushering in a new age of accountability and transparency. Instead, conniving communications staff and desperate politicians are using the very laws created to protect access to information to subvert our right to know. It's a worrisome trend to be sure. On the other hand, a story about bureaucrats and politicians trying desperately to conceal a scandal is almost always better than the scandal itself. dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca

FULL ARTICLE

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A Victory in the Fight for Sunshine in Canada (Darce Fardy)

It's not often that advocates for open government in Canada get good news. And never, I fear, can we expect a government leader to make the kind of pledge to openness and accountability that President Obama made — except during election campaigns.
Our Right to Know Coalition of Nova Scotia is three years old. When I retired after 11 years as Nova Scotia's Freedom of Information Commissioner I gathered a small like-minded group of people together to form a Freedom of Information advocacy group, only the second in Canada. I noticed during my years as commissioner that few people in our province (and likely throughout Canada) were aware of their rights under FOI legislation and those who did seldom used it. Talk of freedom of information is not something that energizes many people.
Like too many democracies in the world Canada suffers from alarmingly low voter turnouts in our federal, provincial and municipal elections; less than 60 percent. This means that in a parliamentary system with three or more political parties competing for power, a party can form a government with the expressed support of only 30 or 40 percent of the electorate. Not much of a mandate from the people.

FULL ARTICLE

Access to information: law and reality miles apart

Access to information: law and reality miles apart
By Dean Jobb
Halifax
Lawyers Weekly
March 06 2009 issue

Imagine a lawyer heading into court to argue a case without being able to read the court file or the documents being entered as evidence.

Now imagine a journalist trying to produce an accurate news story about a case without being allowed to review the file or see the exhibits.

Lawyers get to see the file, of course, but that’s not the case for reporters in many jurisdictions as court officials deny access based on outdated precedents and flawed legal interpretations that critics say undermine the principle of open justice.

There’s a growing chorus of complaint that access to key court documents — informations setting out criminal charges, exhibits tendered during trials, youth court dockets — has become increasingly restrictive, despite a growing body of Charter jurisprudence that demands greater openness. Understaffed court offices and lack of training for front-line officials compound the problem.

“You have to go through hoops — very time-consuming and expensive hoops — in a lot of cases” to get access, complains Tracey Tyler, The Toronto Star’s legal affairs reporter, who has been covering the courts for two decades.

FULL ARTICLE

Watchdog attacks federal cult of secrecy

Watchdog attacks federal cult of secrecy
Access to information so limited it’s a "crisis"
By The Canadian Press
Fri. Feb 27 - 4:46 AM

OTTAWA — There are serious flaws in the administration of the federal access-to-information law, says Information Commissioner Robert Marleau.

In a scathing report, Marleau gives six of 10 federal agencies poor grades on their compliance with a law that is supposed to give the Canadian public access to government files. He calls the situation a "major information management crisis."

"There are major delays, particularly with extensions, with some institutions routinely taking months to respond to information requests," Marleau said.

"Canadians expect and deserve far greater efficiency and accountability from their government."

FULL ARTICLE

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Dr. Shiv Chopra - Canada's foremost Whistleblower at a Right to Know Coalition of NS events (Halifax Mar. 26th and Bible Hill Mar. 27th)

The Right To Know Coalition of Nova Scotia presents

Dr. Shiv Chopra,

Health Canada Scientist and Food Safety Whistleblower.

Halifax: Thursday, March 26th, 7:30 pm,

King's College, Alumni Hall, 6350 Coburg Rd.

Bible Hill: Friday, March 27th, 4:00 pm,

NS Agricultural College, Alumni Theatre, Cumming Hall

Are private interests impacting food and health safety? How is the Canadian government dealing with adverse or critical findings by Health Canada Scientists? How do we ensure a safe food supply for the public?

"Shiv Chopra is a Canadian hero. He was guided by science to conclusions that were not politically convenient" says Dr. David Suzuki.

Dr. Chopra and his colleague's work prevented approval of harmful drugs such as Bovine Growth Hormone, raised early attention to avoidable sources of Mad Cow Disease, questioned the Anthrax scare and warned about the myth of safe and effective vaccines.

His 2009 Corrupt to the Core, an account of how corruption is endangering the public food supply proposes "Five Pillars of Food Safety": to not employ:

Hormones, Antibiotics, Pesticides, Slaughterhouse/Rendered Animal Wastes,

OR Genetically Modified Organisms

All are welcomed to this free public presentation followed by Q&A.

The Right to Know Coalition of Nova Scotia is a not-for-profit organization which encourages the use and development of freedom-of-information legislation to foster a better informed and more politically active electorate and to improve the quality of public and private decision making. No other Nova Scotian organization has a similar mission.

The Right to Know Coalition acknowledges the support of Public Service Alliance of Canada, Nova Scotia Government Employees Union, Nova Scotia Agricultural College and Black River Hydro Limited.

For further information or to arrange interviews please contact Peggy Cameron (902) 492-4372 / 456-2004 or email <p.cameron@ns.sympatico.ca> see also: http://shivchopra.com/

Wednesday, February 25th, 2009

New anti-secrecy plan surfaces on eve of damning report

OTTAWA - MPs were given a new blueprint to renovate the country's antiquated access-to-information law on the eve of a scathing report from the federal information watchdog describing a system in sorry disrepair.

A New Democrat MP introduced a private member's bill Wednesday that would adopt measures Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised more than three years ago to adopt, but has yet to act on.

The bill is based on a comprehensive package drafted in 2005 by then-information commissioner John Reid

Former Information Commissioner John Reid - image by CBC

- reforms that would make more files accessible to the public, expand the commissioner's oversight powers and introduce measures to help ensure federal agencies comply with the act.

NDP MP Pat Martin said Wednesday there is more of a need than ever to scrutinize government activities given the billions of dollars in federal stimulus spending on the books.

"This whole thing is based on the premise that people have a right to know what their government is doing."

The Conservatives took office in early 2006 partly on the strength of promises of new accountability, including reforms to Canada's outdated Access to Information regime advocated by Reid.

However, the Harper government implemented only a handful, including the law's expansion to some additional agencies such as Canada Post, the CBC and Via Rail. The issue of access reform was shunted to a Commons committee for additional study.

"Nobody's going to fall for any of these stunts anymore," Martin said. "Those of us that have been around the block a few times on this issue will not accept anything other than a comprehensive reform bill."

FULL ARTICLE

Listeria monocytogenes - Image by AJC1 via Flickr

Lag in releasing listeriosis notes breaks information law: experts

OTTAWA — The Harper government has delayed for months the release of notes on conference calls held at the height of last summer's deadly listeriosis outbreak - a lag some experts say breaks Ottawa's own information laws.

At issue is an Access to Information request by The Canadian Press to the Privy Council Office for "all transcripts and minutes" of the crucial exchanges last August and September.

Privy Council Office (PCO) - Image by jascha via Flickr

Officials were grappling at the time with a health crisis that sparked intense scrutiny of the national food safety system.

Twenty Canadians died after developing listeriosis, an outbreak that was traced to meat-processing equipment at a Maple Leaf Foods plant in Toronto.

Privy Council officials at first said they had records as requested, but needed four months "to consult other government institutions" about them.

Then Ann Wesch, the access to information director for PCO, wrote a letter dated Feb. 10 stating that in fact "the records retrieved do not fall under the scope of this request. Therefore we have no records relevant to your request."

The explanation for the flip-flop? Records retrieved were handwritten notes - not minutes or transcripts, said the PCO analyst questioned about the response.

This, despite the fact that the word transcribe is in part defined in the Canadian Oxford Dictionary as "make a copy of, esp. in writing . . . write out (shorthand, notes, etc.) . . . ."

Agriculture Canada, in an apparent contradiction of PCO's interpretation, released handwritten notes in answer to an identical request for related transcripts.

Retired Col. Michel Drapeau, a lawyer who co-wrote a book on federal information laws and teaches at the University of Ottawa, was astounded by the Privy Council response.

"It is silly," he said. "I would even say it's infantile to be making this sort of distinction.

"This goes against the spirit of the act and the letter of the act."

Drapeau stressed that the Harper government's own Federal Accountability Act added the onus of a "duty to assist" for institutions that fall under the Access to Information Act.

It requires that federal officials, "without regard to the identity of the person making a request . . . make every reasonable effort to assist the person in connection with the request, respond to the request accurately and completely and, subject to the regulations, provide timely access to the record in the format requested."

What's most disturbing, says Drapeau, is the tone that the Privy Council Office is setting as the public-service standard bearer providing advice and support to the prime minister and cabinet.

"The Privy Council has a duty by virtue of its mission in life to serve as a beacon, to serve as an example, to all public servants - because this is where all authority flows from. This is why the head of the Privy Council Office is also . . . the top public servant.

"And they're setting a bad example. Simple as that."

FULL ARTICLE

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South West Shore Development Authority (SWSDA) tosses reporter from closed meeting

SWSDA tosses reporter from meeting...
Shelburne County Today
18feb2009


Despite the recent ruling by the Nova Scotia Supreme Court that the South West Shore Development Authority (SWSDA) was a public agency according to the laws of the Province and despite protests by several member politicians, CEO Frank Anderson had the Shelburne RCMP escort SCT editor and publisher Timothy Gillespie from the Shelburne meeting of the agency in Shelburne early Wednesday morning.

Anderson told Gillespie that, despite the court ruling, he considered the meeting a "private" one and not open to the public or the media. In a November, 2008 decision, Supreme Court Justice Suzanne Hood determined that, because its membership is comprised almost exclusively of elected officials and the agency's funding is almost exclusively from public funds, SWSDA is a "municipal body" and should not be exempt from legislation controlling their actions.

...

One SWSDA member reported that the board of directors decided at the meeting that the agency was obliged to conform to Freedom of Information requests as "municipal agency", but determined that they were not subject to public meeting legislation. "In light of the court's recent ruling," said an authority on the governing legislation," that is a patently absurd and dangerous conclusion. All of the municipalities which comprise SWSDA are now subject to almost certain legal action in the courts and to all of the costs and bad publicity that will entail."

...
FULL ARTICLE

A fellow Canadian advocacy group worthy of note: Lawyers Rights Watch Canada (LRWC)

Lawyers Rights Watch Canada (LRWC) is a committee of Canadian lawyers who promote human rights and the rule of law by providing support internationally to human rights defenders in danger. LRWC promotes the implementation and enfosigned to protect the independence and security of human rights defenders around the world.

LRWC: campaigns for lawyers whose rights, freedoms or independence are threatened as a result of their human rights advocacy; and, produces legal analyses of national and international laws and standards relevant to human rights abuses against lawyers and other human rights defenders; and, works in cooperation with other human rights organizations. Around the world, lawyers and others who defend human rights are often singled out as targets of repression much of which is perpetrated by governments or government-controlled agencies. Criminal offences against human rights defenders occur with alarming frequency. The 2002 report of the International Commission of Jurists records reprisals against 315 lawyers and judges including 38 murders and 5 disappearances. In addition authorities use existing laws and legal procedures to prosecute or otherwise intimidate advocates representing unpopular clients or causes, often in violation of international standards. Methods used to silence intimidate or punish advocates are often illegal pursuant to the law of the state itself. LRWC seeks to identify illegal actions against advocates, campaign for the cessation of such actions and lobby for the implementation of effective immediate and long-term remedies. Recent Publication in the Jurist: Omar Khadr: Release, Repatriation, and Remedies JURIST Special Guest Columnist Gail Davidson, Executive Director of Lawyers Rights Watch Canada, says that Canada and the US are duty-bound to act immediately to ensure that Canadian Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Khadr is released and repatriated, his rights are protected and violations of his rights are investigated and remedied, where appropriate, by Omar Khadr - Image via Wikipedia criminal proceedings against the perpetrators....