OTTAWA – The Information Commissioner of Canada’s special report Access at Issue: The need for leadership was tabled in Parliament today. The report details the results of her investigation into systemic issues affecting the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s (RCMP) handling of access to information requests.
The Commissioner launched this investigation in response to the RCMP’s consistent failure to provide timely responses to access to information requests as well as its failure to provide representations to the OIC during investigations related to complaints about delays.
“The key findings in my special report lead me to conclude the obvious: a change of course in the area of access at the RCMP is urgently needed,” said Information Commissioner Caroline Maynard. “If the Minister and senior RCMP leaders fail to act on my findings, the organization will continue to fail at upholding the right of access.”
The report details six issues of concern impacting the RCMP’S ability to respond to access requests in a timely manner: tasking; procedures, training, electronic systems, insufficient resources, and a lack of a comprehensive strategy to make improvements. The report also provides 15 recommendations for tackling these issues effectively.
SOURCE Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
