Politicos spar over FOI requests

By Dan Hilborn
Published Jan. 31, 2004


A suggestion from Burquitlam MLA Harry Bloy that the provincial government might allow a two-month delay before responding to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests has raised the ire of NDP house leader Joy MacPhail.

Bloy, a member of the all-party committee reviewing the province's FOI and Protection of Privacy Act, said most people who file FOI requests are frustrated by the current process, which typically results in only a partial answer to their question prior to the mandated 30-day response time.

"One of the biggest concerns we're hearing is that people felt they were being slowed down or delayed," said Bloy, who is one of 13 members on the Special Committee to Review the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act that was established last year.

"Often it takes another 30 days to get the request. ... Maybe it should be 60 days," he said.

But MacPhail, who also serves on the FOI review committee, said lengthening the time it takes to respond is not the answer the public is seeking.

"No one has ever asked for that," MacPhail said. "When the Liberals ask the presenters if that's a good idea, virtually to a person they say it's not a good idea."

MacPhail said increasing the response time for FOI requests will simply undermine the intent of the legislation.

"If they're going to increase the response time, you know how much that will weaken freedom of information. It seems that's the intent of this government, to undermine and render FOI laws useless.

"If Mr. Bloy is saying that's the direction this government is going, then shame on them. The problem here is that the government is doing everything possible to not fulfil its FOI requests."

MacPhail said she has several concerns about the future of how FOI legislation will be used in British Columbia, including revelations that the province now rates FOI requests on their 'political sensitivity.'

She also decried what she believes is a growing tendency for the B.C. Liberals to conduct public business behind closed doors.

"The government caucus Liberal backbenchers are increasingly wanting to do their business in camera," MacPhail said. "These committees go in camera when it's not necessary.

"In fact, I've been completely beaten down on this issue," she said. "I'm just one opposition member in a room with nine or 10 Liberals and they seek every opportunity to go in camera to avoid public scrutiny. That was not the intent of the legislative committees."

But Bloy said that longer wait times is just one possible response to the complaint about how long it takes to resolve FOI requests.

"It's an expensive proposition to provide freedom of information, and where do you draw the line?" Bloy asked. "People are feeling that it's taking too long but, since this legislation started in 1996, its use has greatly increased. Up to 75 or 80 per cent are getting the information requested in a timely manner within the first 30 days."

As an example of a case that might take longer than 30 days, Bloy pointed to someone requesting information about an ongoing police in- vestigation. "If it's a criminal case or a police case with an ongoing investigation, it takes a lot of time. It can't be a clerk (who decides what to release). It needs to be a policeman who goes through the document, page by page, to determine what can be released or what can't."

Bloy noted that the committee is also wrestling with the contentious issues of how private companies should handle their customers' personal information, and the release of government reports that may contain factual errors.

For her part, the new minister responsible for the FOI legislation said she will not comment on any possible changes to the act until after the committee makes its formal recommendations.

"At this point, it's very premature to speculate what recommendations the committee will make and which of those this government will act on," said Joyce Murray, the newly appointed minister of management services.

She also would not comment on the specific possibility of increasing the amount of time the government allows to respond to FOI requests.

"I'm not going to give an opinion on that right now," she said. "I'm in the process of finding out more about these issues and about freedom of information and protection of privacy. One thing I do believe, however, is that B.C. is at the cutting edge of these issues, both on the privacy side and the access to information side. We're recognized as a leader and my intent is that we continue to be at the edge of good public policy on these issues."