Canada’s Freedom of Information Laws Ineffective, Outdated, Study Finds

In the study of five parliamentary democracies, Canada’s access to information system ranked last.

How the mighty have fallen. Almost thirty years ago Canada became one of the first countries to pass freedom of information legislation, which for years was seen as a model of government transparency laws. But a new study has now ranked Canada's information laws last, behind New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Ireland, blaming low usage rates and a lack of political will for the system’s breakdown. Despite the advent of the internet Canada's law has not been significantly changed since 1983, and it is difficult for citizens to file requests online. Additionally, only 16 per cent of requests last year resulted in the full disclosure of information, and only 56 per cent were completed in the mandated 30-day period.