The complainant alleged that the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA) had improperly withheld information under the following provisions of the Access to Information Act in response to an access request:

• subsection 19(1) (personal information);
• section 23 (solicitor-client and litigation privilege);
• subsection 16(2) (facilitating the commission of an offence);
• paragraph 20(1)(b) (confidential third-party financial, commercial, scientific or technical information);
• paragraph 21(1)(a) (advice or recommendations);
• paragraph 21(1)(b) (accounts of consultations or deliberations); and
• paragraph 21(1)(c) (positions or plans developed for negotiations).

The complainant also alleged that VFPA did not conduct a reasonable search for records in response to the access request. The request was for records related to a marine water incident on April 30, 2021, at Garry Point Park in Richmond, British Columbia, involving the ship SM Tianjin. The allegations fall under paragraph 30(1)(a) of the Act. VFPA could not show that it met all the requirements of these exemptions – in particular, it did not demonstrate that some of the information was personal information, or advice or recommendations. The Information Commissioner ordered VFPA to disclose information on pages, 38, 88, 1439, 1522, 3731, 3738, 3739 and 3743, 3748, 3776 (after the first sentence) and 3783 (except the seventh and last sentence) no later than 36 business days after the date of the final report. VFPA gave notice to the Commissioner that it would implement the order. The complaint is well founded.