ATIP News

For any real change to occur, there have to be reasonable amendments that protect speculative discussions and open policy making, but do not permit cover-ups of embarrassing information. One of the jobs public servants most dislike is responding to Access to Information and Privacy requests, known as ATIPs. When I was a public servant, it was the sort of job dumped on junior officers, or those new to a division, as others more senior avoided them like the plague. Read more at  https://www.hilltimes.com/2020/10/14/atips-a-headache-in-need-of-a-cure/267610

How to turn things around?  First, have the auditor general conduct a system audit to ensure that federal institutions have the required complement of bureaucrats to properly administer the act. Many are currently critically understaffed.  Second, refocus the assorted objectives of the Office of the Information Commissioner; its core mandate should be constricted to the investigation of complaints. Truth be told, with its year-plus backlog of complaints, that office currently acts as an impediment to the timely pursuit of our right of access. Read more at  https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/todays-letters-fixing-the-access-to-information-system