By CHAD SKELTON VANCOUVER SUN February 3, 2011 [Excerpts] The B.C. government says it will soon begin posting records it releases in response to Freedom of Information requests on its website – a move it says will improve transparency but critics fear could discourage requests. The government’s move comes just month after BC Ferries, which […]

BC FIPA presented its submission on ‘Open Government’ to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics (ETHI). We have to ensure that overdue moves toward more routine release and the use of technology to make government information more widely available must also make this information useable for all Canadians. […]

The government of British Columbia has appealed a decision by the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner ordering release of the complete IBM Workplace Services contract. The government’s petition for judicial review will be their second trip to BC Supreme Court in an attempt to withhold all or part of the $500 million IBM […]

Dean Beeby Ottawa- The Canadian Press Jan. 09, 2011 A new study ranks Canada dead last in an international comparison of freedom-of-information laws – a hard fall after many years being judged a global model in openness. The study by a pair of British academics looked at the effectiveness of freedom-of-information laws in five parliamentary […]

In another blow to government secrecy, the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association has won an important victory in forcing the provincial government to release contracts it makes with the private sector. In a decision handed down yesterday, the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner ordered the government to hand over an unredacted […]

ACCESS TO INFORMATION WILL SUFFER IF POLICY SPREADS TO OTHER PUBLIC BODIES Vancouver – After being brought back under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), BC Ferries has set up a system designed to discourage FOI requests, especially those from public interest groups and the media. The new policy states that […]

FIPA has sent a letter to BC’s Information and Privacy Commissioner requesting an investigation into what appear to be false claims that there were “no responsive records” to requests made under the freedom of information act. Both FIPA and the province’s Official Opposition made requests for records of government discussions concerning the creation of a […]

BC FIPA sought a judicial review of the order by the Office of Information and Privacy Commissioner of British Columbia dated January 27, 2009, (F09-02) regarding the scope of the exemption for “advice and recommendations” under s. 13(1) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA). BC FIPA did not agree with […]

The Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner has ruled that the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority (VCHA) must disclose commercial and financial details of three outsourcing contracts in response to FOI requests. While issuing a series of orders today, BC’s new Information and Privacy Commissioner, Elizabeth Denham stated, “These three orders are the latest in […]

Two environmental groups say they won a six-year battle over access to documents on sea lice, only to have the government change the rules and refuse the information for their next request. In 2004, Ecojustice and the T. Buck Suzuki Environmental Foundation requested sea lice infestation information from 2002 and 2003 but the government wouldn’t […]

Les Leyne Times Colonist June 22, 2010 When the representative for children and youth went to court last month during an argument over access to cabinet documents, Children’s Minister Mary Polak condemned the move. She expressed dismay about the “unfortunate waste of scarce resources.” The representative, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, was portrayed as wasting taxpayers’ money […]

BC FIPA presented its submission to the Alberta Legislative Standing Committee on Health review of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA). The submission consists of an extensive report prepared by journalist and researcher, Stanley L. Tromp. Based on a comparative analysis of FOI laws around the world it makes 79 recommendations […]