In this issue: FIPA celebrates 7th birthday of FOI Request for BC government’s $300 million contract with IBM Mayor Gregor Robertson flip-flops on freedom of information policy Privacy, civil liberties groups issue statement of principles on Canada-U.S. perimeter agreement Download the update (pdf).

According to Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, what’s good for the City isn’t good for the city’s police department when it comes to freedom of information policy. Vancouver Police Department will continue posting records obtained through FOI simultaneously to the requester and the VPD website, even though Mayor Gregor Robertson and Vancouver City Council voted to […]

The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association held a birthday party today for its longest-running FOI request, which turns seven this month. FIPA has been trying since 2004 to get an uncensored copy of the BC government’s $300 million Workplace Services Agreement with IBM, but the government continues to fight against its release. FIPA […]

Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver – In advance of today’s anticipated Canada-U.S. border deal signing in Washington, D.C., FIPA and seven other Canadian civil liberties groups have released a 12-point statement of principles they hope will help guide public and parliamentary debate in the months to come. The joint statement of principles was developed over the […]

Ontario Information and Privacy Commissioner Ann Cavoukian has added her voice to the growing chorus of critics of the federal Conservatives’ promised “lawful access” legislation that will expand state surveillance of the Internet and telecommunications. Ms. Cavoukian has issued a devastating critique of the imminent legislation– the most comprehensive and authoritative analysis to date. In […]

Privacy Commissioner of Canada Jennifer Stoddart has sent an open letter to Canadian Minister of Public Safety Vic Toews to outline her deep concerns about “lawful access” legislation that is expected soon from the Harper government. “Lawful access” refers to the legal authority of police and security officials to monitor, intercept, seize, and search our […]

CORPORATE SUBSIDIARIES OF PUBLIC BODIES NOW BEYOND THE LAW Edit: See October 25, 2011 update below. A decision by the Information and Privacy Commissioner’s Office last week confirms that BC universities and other public bodies can create independent companies whose records are beyond the reach of the province’s freedom of information law. And even though […]

PROPOSED CHANGES WOULD RADICALLY ALTER FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LAW Your privacy is at risk as never before in B.C., and the immediate threat isn’t coming from Facebook or Canada’s spy agency – it’s a bill before the B.C. legislature. Without consulting you, our premier and a gaggle of techno-bureaucrats have decided to sacrifice B.C.’s privacy […]

Joint FIPA-Newspapers Canada Letter To Secretary Clinton Corrects the Record Newspapers Canada and the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association have joined forces to correct the federal government’s claims about their performance on transparency and Access to Information made in a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. The joint letter to […]

FIPA and the BC Civil Liberties Association are raising the alarm over amendments to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act introduced yesterday. “The government has decided on a policy to massively increase the personal information collected, stored and shared with others,” said Micheal Vonn, Policy Director of the BCCLA. “Yet, projects like […]

A total refusal to release contracts in Winnipeg. Quebec’s denial of basic accountability information about top officials’ spending. Passenger manifests for Ontario’s executive aircraft. The federal government’s stubborn refusal to release data in a useful form. These are just some of the findings of the Newspapers Canada sixth annual National Freedom of Information Audit, which […]

There is a growing furor in Parliament over the actions of a former ministerial aide who Canada’s Information Commissioner found had interfered with an access-to-information request. (See “Transparency groups urge Commons inquiry into RCMP’s dropping investigation into violation of Access to Information Act“) Parliamentary Secretary Dean del Mastro stood tall for former ministerial aide Sebastien […]