Access-to-Information

By Ken Rubin Shocking revelations and events can stir the public. But that does not mean officials want to give up systemic secrecy practices and bring in wholesale corrective changes. So it was refreshing then for a change to see the Canadian military's medical team under Operation Laser acting as whistle blowers raising public attention about the dismal conditions and the on-going plight they found in long-term care homes. The data they provided about these homes would normally have been withheld.  

(Toronto: April 30, 2020)  Environment and Climate Change Canada has been named today as the 2019 recipient of the Code of Silence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Secrecy in the federal category.

(Toronto: April 28, 2020)  The Government of Alberta is the 2019 recipient of the Code of Silence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Secrecy in the provincial category.

By Ken Rubin April 25, 2020 - Secrecy and autocratic, erratic government should not become the new normal during or after the COVID-19 crisis. Rather, as former health minister Jane Philpott (currently working at COVID-19 intake centre) has said, what is needed is “radical transparency” to keep Canadians abreast of developments. Some see holding daily press conferences and putting some data on government websites as sufficient. Others see a limited-edition Parliament as being transparent. But neither is enough.

By Ken Rubin April 20, 2020 - COVID-19 puts privacy rights under attack. Zoom-bomers, COVID-19 scammers, and cellphone trackers are gaining ground as Canadians self-isolate. With the necessity of greater cyberspace interactions, the crisis continues to introduce or enhance more grounds for privacy invasion.

By Ken Rubin Trudeau isn't transparent enough; Some agencies have simply placed requests for information from the public on hold, despite this being a violation of the Access to Information Act. On April 17, 2020, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised his government would proactively disseminate COVID-19 related information on-line. But the CBC, in its ongoing “Big Spend”series, has been reporting on the many gaps in available government information on the billions in pandemic funds going out the door.