2008-2009 Advice and consultations

In 2008–2009, we took part in the development of the Treasury Board Secretariat’s directive on access to information, with the aim of specifically addressing the duty to assist provision of the Access to Information Act. This provision explicitly requires all institutions to help requesters find the information they seek.

We also worked with other officers of Parliament to put forward our perspective on Treasury Board Secretariat policies. These policies were developed for federal departments and agencies and do not always accommodate the unique roles of independent officers of Parliament.

Finally, we consulted a group of directors of access to information on how best to categorize the results of our investigations. Until now, we have simply categorized complaints as being resolved, not resolved, substantiated or not substantiated. We committed to reviewing this practice, after receiving feedback during the report cards process, in order to provide a more precise picture of institutional compliance.