Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

A system designed to open government records has instead become a fortress of exemptions, redactions and endless delays (The Orca)

For more than 40 years, we have had a federal law on Access to Information (ATI) to permit the public to ask for government records. Hardly cause for celebration.

After well more than 3,000 tries, mostly thwarted, I now view ATI as a different acronym: the government’s Arrogance Toward Inquiries, an Antagonism Targeting Investigators, with Administered Tricks Involved and an Ability To Ignore.

I stopped ages ago keeping a running list of the federal records I thought I could obtain under the law that provides me the right to know—turns out, all along it’s been the government’s right to no ...

CLICK HERE for the full story

 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

British Columbians Still Don’t Know Who’s Paying for NDP’s BC Hydro Deal

The NDP is making billion-dollar promises with BC Hydro, but British Columbians still don’t know who will pay the bill. Last week’s memorandum of understanding isn’t what the federal government and the NDP are making it out to be. It’s an admission that the NDP failed to make the long-term investments needed to keep B.C. powered. Now British Columbians have serious questions about the cost and whether BC Hydro ratepayers will end up paying the price. David L. Williams, MLA for Salmon Arm-Shuswap and Shadow Minister for BC Hydro and Electrical Energy Development , said British Columbians deserve clear answers about the full implications of the Canada–British Columbia Cooperative Prosperity Agreement. “British Columbians deserve the full truth,” said Mr. Williams. “This multi-billion-dollar announcement does not answer who pays for cost overruns, who pays for new generation, who carries the risk if industrial customers do not materialize, or whether ratepayers will be forced ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Nurses Take Job Action After Years of NDP Neglect

Image Credit:  BC Nurses Union BC nurses have reached a breaking point after years of unsafe conditions, rising violence in the workplace and a government that wouldn’t listen. Now they are on the picket line fighting to be heard. Last week, nurses began job action with a 72-hour strike notice, refusing non-essential overtime and stepping back from non-nursing duties. As of Tuesday, they have escalated to picket lines for the first time in decades. This moment was avoidable. It is the result of years of unanswered concerns from the frontline workers who keep our hospitals running. Nurses have been raising the same concerns for years: unsafe staffing levels, rising violence on the job, and a workload no single person should have to carry. None of it is new, and none of it should have taken a strike vote to get the government's attention. "Nurses are exercising their legal right to job action, but it shouldn’t have had to come to this," said Kiel Giddens, MLA for...
Post a Comment
Read more

NDP Must Stop Delaying Help for Crash Victims

The NDP government is letting down British Columbians who suffer life-changing injuries in serious car crashes. Sheldon Clare, MLA for Prince George-North Cariboo, appeared before a Special Committee to push for immediate action on reforms to support people with catastrophic motor vehicle crash injuries. Clare is the sponsor of Bill M237, the Insurance (Vehicle) Amendment Act, 2026, which includes two amendments: give catastrophically injured people more time to access benefits and ensure the loss of a single limb qualifies as a catastrophic injury." “Bill M237 will ensure that British Columbians who suffer life-altering injuries are not excluded from support because of restrictive definitions or procedural barriers,” said Clare. “When someone loses a limb, the consequences are profound. The law should recognize that. This bill makes common-sense fixes to address clear gaps in the current system.” Instead of fixing the problem this spring, the NDP sent it to a committee, delaying ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more