In this issue: 2012 BC Informatiion Summit tackles “Government 2.0” Just Rewards: Darrell Evans awarded Grace-Pépin Access to Information Award OIPC to investigate government’s failure to post FOI requests after FIPA complaint BC election law still has constitutional problems despite BC Court of Appeal ruling Lock Down: wall of secrecy around Ministry of Health privacy […]

The ink was barely dry on the federal government’s new copyright reform bill when they signed on to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a controversial new trade agreement that could toss that piece of legislation under the bus, along with the minimal protections it provided to Canadians who use intellectual property. That’s just one reason why […]

FIPA is calling on Premier Christy Clark to call back the Legislature to amend election legislation the BC Court of Appeal has just declared unconstitutional. The government made a number of changes to the Election Act during the spring sitting, and then referred those changes to the Court of Appeal for an opinion on their […]

FIPA’s founding Executive Director and former President Darrell Evans was honoured with the Grace-Pepin Access to Information award at Wednesday’s BC Information Summit. Presented to Mr. Evans by Canada’s Information Commissioner Suzanne Legault and BC Information and Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth Denham, the Grace-Pepin award recognizes Darrell’s life-long commitment to the principles of transparency, accountability and […]

FIPA is excited that the 2012 BC Information is now mere days away. Join us Wednesday, September 19th at UBC Robson Square for what is certain to be an exciting and engaging day of discussion. This year, we’re proud to host an outstanding team of speakers and contributors including: -BC Information and Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth […]

With controversy swirling around the Integrated Case Management system, and with the introduction of the “Smart CareCard” just around the corner, the upcoming BC Information Summit promises to be a timely examination of how information management is changing throughout this province. Our final conference lineup is now confirmed and we’re excited to announce some fantastic […]

BC FIPA filed an Intervener Factum on August 15, 2012 in the Reference concerning the constitutionality of amendments to provisions of in the Election Act, RSBC 1996, c. 106 regarding election advertising by third parties. BC FIPA argues that there should be a minimum spending threshold to trigger provisions in the Act requiring third parties […]

Following a scathing statement from the Representative for Children and Youth, and with the Privacy Commissioner and Auditor General also looking at the situation, several non-profit groups and privacy advocates have written to Premier Christy Clark seeking a public inquiry into the $200 million Integrated Case Management (ICM) project. The letter to the Premier is […]

Privacy concerns are snowballing about the collection, use and disclosure of personal information through police databases. On Wednesday, BC Information and Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth Denham released a report detailing her recent investigation into employment-related criminal record checks by the BC Government. In her report, Denham notes that approximately 85% of the government’s 33,500 employees must […]

BC’s Representative for Children and Youth has released a scathing statement expressing deep concerns over the effectiveness, security, and reliability of the BC Government’s pricey Integrated Case Management System. Representative Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond doesn’t mince words in her statement, stating “I strongly believe that ICM is not adequate to provide safety to vulnerable children, youth […]

FIPA is excited to announce that the 2012 BC Information Summit will take place September 19th at UBC Robson Square. The event, entitled “This Time, It’s Personal: Freedom of Information and Privacy Under Government 2.0” will take a comprehensive look at the BC Government’s new “Government 2.0: Citizens @ The Centre” initiative, and what it […]

The day before the beginning of a long weekend in both Canada and the United States, our governments finally released perimeter security privacy protection principles that were supposed to have been completed on May 30. It really wasn’t worth the wait. You can see the full text of the document here. Adding irony to the […]