Backgrounder

Funding mechanisms for Agents of Parliament – Steps taken

• In 2015, the Prime Minister requested the government house leader in his mandate letter to ensure that “agents of Parliament are properly funded and accountable only to Parliament, not the government of the day.”
• In 2019, the Agents of Parliament sent a letter to the Clerk of the Privy Council, requesting PCO to engage with them on this issue as they were seeking an alternative to the existing funding mechanism process.

Funding mechanisms for Agents of Parliament – Pilot Project

• In 2005, an advisory panel pilot project was launched to test a proposed new funding and oversight model for Agents of Parliament.
• The advisory panel was initiated in response to concerns that independence from government may be compromised by the fact that Treasury Board determines the amount of funding available to the Agents of Parliament.
• The Corbett report published in 2008 concluded that the pilot project was a success and should be made permanent. It achieved the key objective of reducing the perception of conflict of interest that was inherent in the pre-existing process.
• In 2011, the government of the day stopped seeking the panel’s advice after forming a majority government and asserting greater control over the work of parliamentary committees.

Funding mechanisms for Agents of Parliament – Alternatives

• Not all Agents of Parliament have the same Funding Mechanism.
• The Parliamentary Budget Officer has the ability to request funds from the Speaker.
• The Parliamentary Budget Officer’s budget goes to the Speakers of the House and Senate.
• The Conflict of Interest and the Ethics Commissioner’s budget goes to the House Speaker. Speakers then send it to Treasury Board.
• The Chief Electoral Officer has an annual appropriation for the salary of permanent staff and a statutory spending authority for all other expenditures.

Guiding Principles - Investigations

1. When we begin an investigation, we complete it within a reasonable timeframe.
2. We investigate complainants' allegations as stated or as clarified at the beginning of the investigation and according to the parameters of the access request.
3. We prioritize discussions with the parties to complete investigations promptly.
4. We seek representations promptly in order not to delay investigations; we conclude investigations even when the parties do not provide representations.
5. We diligently follow up on files without waiting between steps.
6. The analysis we present in published final reports is as complete as possible to serve as a reference for completing other investigations.
7. We follow our established investigations processes to ensure high quality and efficient investigations and reports.

Investigations: Results

• Since the beginning of Commissioner Maynard’s mandate on March 1, 2018, the number of complaints received by the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) has grown by 180%.
• 2021-2022 was a record year, with almost 7,000 new complaints registered (70% more than the previous year).
• Complaint numbers for 2022-23 will likely surpass those of the previous year.
• In 2021-2022, the OIC succeeded in closing 67% more complaints than the previous year.
• To provide clear guidance on the Commissioner’s interpretation of the Act and to ensure that complainants and institutions understand the OIC’s position, the OIC has published 125 final reports and summaries on its website as of March 1, 2023.

Planned human resources

For more information on the OIC’s priorities, structure, planned spending and human resources, please consult our Publications section.

Investigations: Statistics as of March 1, 2023

• As of March 1, 2023, the OIC has closed 25% more complaints compared to same time last year.

• Commissioner Maynard’s first priority when she arrived at the OIC was to address the inventory of complaints she inherited, while continuing to investigate new complaints.
• As of March 1, 2023, the OIC has managed to clear 97% of the backlog of approximately 3,500 files that existed at the beginning of the Commissioner’s mandate.
• The OIC inventory has decreased by 25% over the last eleven months.

• Since the coming into force of C-58 in June 2019, the Commissioner has made 194 orders.
• The Commissioner has made most of these orders (85%) during the current fiscal year.

• Since the coming into force of C-58, under section 6.1(1) of the Access to Information Act,institutions may refuse to process an access request if, in the opinion of the head of the institution, the request is deemed vexatious, made in bad faith or otherwise an abuse of the right to make a request for access to records.
• An institution cannot refuse to process a request without the Information Commissioner’s approval.
• Since June 2019, the Commissioner received 55 such applications from institutions. Permission was granted in five cases, including one for a request regarded as part of a pattern of behaviour that involved repeated access requests for substantively the same information.

• Since the coming into force of C-58, under section 6.1(1) of the Access to Information Act,institutions may refuse to process an access request if, in the opinion of the head of the institution, the request is deemed vexatious, made in bad faith or otherwise an abuse of the right to make a request for access to records.
• An institution cannot refuse to process a request without the Information Commissioner’s approval.
• Since June 2019, the Commissioner received 55 such applications from institutions. Permission was granted in five cases, including one for a request regarded as part of a pattern of behaviour that involved repeated access requests for substantively the same information.