A forum initiated by the Canadian Association of Professional Access and Privacy Administrators with the active support of our Coalition and the blessing of the independent FOI Review Office was held September 28, 2010 at King’s College, Alumni Hall.

The main speaker was Fred Vallance-Jones, a professor at King’s Journalism School and author of the annual freedom of information audit by the Canadian Newspapers Association. He spoke, of course, about the audit.

This was followed by three panels organized by the coalition which I moderated. The first offered the Nova Scotia Government Freedom of Information Administrator and a former DM Justice an opportunity to speak to the government’s approach to the provincial Freedom of Information Act.

Two members of the legislature, one from the government caucus and the other from the opposition Liberal caucus were the second panel. The government rep., of course, was expected to defend the government’s openness and accountability. The one-year-old NDP government, while in opposition, was a devoted supporter of the FOI Act, and used it often and effectively. Not so much devoted in government… no surprise to anyone. The Liberal rep. was a new MLA, just 26 years old. Both politicians were reasonable and polite and intelligent..The young Liberal used to be a student in the government member’s pol-sci class.

The last panel was made up of three seasoned journalists, all of whom are users of the FOI Act in their efforts to wrest information from the government.  They were joined by a young woman, a recent graduate of King’s J-School.  The journalists’ panel was predictably and particularly critical of government’s lack of enthusiasm for the FOI Act. Questions from the audience, several of whom were government FOI administrators not exactly in accord with the views of the cranky journalists, continued until the lights dimmed.

Toby Mendel, the Executive Director of the new Halifax-based Centre for Law and Democracy and an expert in international access to information laws, compared, Canadian access legislation unfavourably with many of the other countries who have adopted right to know legislation. Toby, who travels frequently in other countries, is an enthusiastic and welcome new member of our coalition.

Organizing panels can be a tough job for a small, impecunious coalition the directors of which are busy, busy with jobs and families. The only unemployed member is the guy they elected President. Go figure!

Thanks for your interest and thanks to CAPAPA for spearheading the effort.

Darce Fardy
President
Right to Know Coalition of Nova Scotia
(902) 422-1481
darce@eastlink.ca
www.nsrighttoknow.ca