The Canadian "Human Rights" Commission (CHRC) has "placed itself in a position of deemed refusal" according to the Information Commissioner of Canada in response to complaints filed by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF). After months of wrangling with the federal government's chief censorship body, the CTF was able to obtain records from the CHRC revealing that Chief Commissar Jennifer Lynch spent much more on flights and hospitality than she revealed online, and that what she disclosed was at times nearly half of the actual cost.

The CTF filed three separate Access to Information Requests in August of 2009 to obtain details on Lynch's expenses. The CHRC refused to provide information within the legally allotted time frame as it would "unreasonably interfere with the operations of the [Commission]," but finally bowed to pressure and released the documents more than a month late.

In the Information Commissioner's rulings dated January 27, 2010, the CHRC was deemed in all three cases to have failed to comply with the law and provide the required and complete information within the proper time frame.

The CHRC's respect for Canada's access to information laws should hardly be a surprise given its respect for Canada's constitution and legal inheritance.

By: Derek Fildebrandt
Posted: January 28, 2010
Topic: Federal

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