Access to Information

Topic: Access to Information


First Nations say Alberta’s oilsands mine security reform unlikely to fix problems

EDMONTON — Alberta is preparing to change how it ensures oilsands companies are able to pay for the mammoth job of cleaning up their operations, but critics fear a year of consultations hasn’t been enough to avoid repeating past mistakes. “There’s no signal to me from this government that they are going to hold industry […]

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Feds say ‘no willing partners’ to bring fire codes onto First Nations — including AFN

OTTAWA — The federal government does not have a willing partner to find a way to introduce fire codes on First Nation reserves, a newly released document shows. The senior director for the Indigenous Fire Marshal Service, however, says there are steps Ottawa can take now to better protect communities. “Doing nothing is not an […]

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Access Application Fee Report Released

Investigation Report 23-01: Access application fee six-month review While the review revealed mixed findings we were glad to have input and impact through our submission and pleased to see the report recognizes the fundamental barrier to access that the fees create. We look forward to prompt action by the Government to act upon these recommendations […]

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SUPREME COURT NOTEBOOK: Justices yet to decide any cases

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has never been so slow. For the first time, the justices have gone more than three months without resolving any cases in which they heard arguments, since their term began in early October. By this point, they always had decided at least one case, and usually a handful, according […]

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Critics pan government plaque praising Canada’s evacuation efforts in Afghanistan

OTTAWA — Global Affairs Canada plans to install a plaque commemorating Canada’s evacuation of Afghans and embassy staff when its capital Kabul fell to the Taliban, but critics argue that sends the wrong message. The plaque carried a $10,000 price tag and was approved in a July 2022 memorandum that The Canadian Press obtained through an access-to-information request. It […]

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2023 FOI 101 Update

Ensuring people are empowered to access information is central to our mandate. That’s why we’re so pleased to continue working with Courthouse Libraries BC to make sure Freedom of Information 101 is available through their Vimeo platform and updated regularly. Check out this latest material here. This is a skills training webinar for newcomers to […]

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Turkey says Swedish decision not to probe protest ‘absurd’

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey on Tuesday denounced as “absurd” a decision by a Swedish prosecutor not to open an investigation into a protest by Kurds in central Stockholm where an effigy of the Turkish president was hung from a lamppost. Last week’s protest outside Stockholm City Hall drew an angry backlash from Turkey, a […]

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Nova Scotia opposition wants more accountability on ‘frightening’ ER problems

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia’s opposition parties pushed Monday for more public accountability from the government over the province’s struggling hospital emergency departments. NDP Leader Claudia Chender called for Health Minister Michelle Thompson and provincial health authority CEO Karen Oldfield to appear before the legislature’s health committee on Thursday — a request that was later turned […]

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Government officials estimate Ontario could be short 8,500 early childhood educators

TORONTO — Ontario could be short 8,500 registered early childhood educators as the province adds tens of thousands more child-care spaces under the national $10-a-day program, the government estimates. The province is set to hold consultation sessions with people in the child-care sector starting next week. In slide decks obtained by The Canadian Press, officials say about […]

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Emergency departments are in a state of crisis, Halifax ER chief says

HALIFAX — The head of emergency medicine for Halifax and the surrounding area says ERs are under the most extreme pressure that he’s seen in his 23-year career, and he says it’s taking a toll on patients and health-care workers. Emergency medicine is in a state of “crisis” amid a shortage of nurses, physicians and […]

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Sweden: Erdogan effigy ‘act of sabotage’ against NATO bid

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Friday denounced a protest by Kurds in central Stockholm, where an effigy of Turkey’s president was hung from a lamppost, as an act of “sabotage” against Sweden’s bid to join NATO. The protest outside City Hall on Wednesday drew an angry backlash from Turkey, a […]

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Prince Rupert port set to ban cruise ships from dumping contaminated wastewater

A second port on Canada’s West Coast is proposing a ban on cruise ships dumping contaminated and acidic wastewater while docked to protect the marine environment. The Port of Prince Rupert on B.C.’s north coast is taking public feedback until Feb. 5 on changes slated for 2023, including forbidding the open-loop scrubber systems that cruise […]

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