Tim Duncan revelations May 18th; George Gretes exhonerated 8 days later by Virk's Loop-Hole Act: NO OFFENCE

May 18, 2015

Ms. Elizabeth Denham
Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner
PO Box 9038, Stn. Prov. Govt
Victoria B.C. V8W 9A4

RE: Destruction of Freedom of Information records

Dear Ms. Denham:

I am a former Executive Assistant to the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. I am concerned with how requests for email under the Freedom of Information Act are being administered in Ministerial offices.

When Freedom of Information (FOI) requests are made for ministerial staff emails, it concems me that political appointees are allowed to self-report their response. This allows for misconduct to occur, and often a "No records" response to be reported.

Such an incident happened to me in November 2014- The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure received a FOI request for records relating to meetings held by officials in the ministry relating to missing women on the Highway of Tears.  

SNIP

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BC Offence Act:    1996

General offence

5  A person who contravenes an enactment by doing an act that it forbids, or omitting to do an act that it requires to be done, commits an offence against the enactment.

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Virk's Loop-Hole Act

Certified correct as passed Third Reading on the 26th day of May, 2015
Craig James, Clerk of the House

Information Management Act

Section 5 of Offence Act

20  Section 5 of the Offence Act does not apply to this Act. (Gretes / Virk)

Application to Supreme Court for return of information

21  (1) If government information is held without legal authority by a person other than a government body, the head of a government body required to hold the government information may apply to the Supreme Court for an order that the person return that government information to the government body.

(2) This section does not limit any remedy otherwise available to a government body or other person by law.  (Loukidelis)

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Part 6 – General Provisions
	19	Responsibility of head of government body
	20	Section 5 of Offence Act
	21	Application to Supreme Court for return of information
	22	Power to make regulations

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The kicker to the Information Management Act is that there wasn't a mention of offenders being absolved of Triple-O-Delete, only a slap on the wrist, if there was Perjury eg. George Gretes.

In a Letter of praise to Amrik Virk from Elizabeth Denham without her knowledge of an impending Loop-Hole of exoneration of any BC Liberal government perps:

February 13, 2015 Honourable Amrik Virk
Minister of Technology, Innovation
and Citizens' Services
Room 346, Parliament Buildings
Victoria BC V8V 1X4

Dear Minister Virk:

Re: Bill 5 – Government Information Act; OIPC File F14-60070

I am writing to comment on Bill 5, the Government Information Act, tabled in the Legislative Assembly on February 12, 2015. I am encouraged that government is proposing legislation that will provide a framework for modern records management within government.... etc.