VANCOUVER, B.C.: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on the B.C. Government to immediately resume proactive disclosures and cancel Bill 9 which proposes sweeping rollbacks on provincial freedom of information laws. 

“Premier David Eby has launched an all-out offensive against transparency and accountable government,” said Carson Binda, B.C. Director for the CTF. “Democracy dies in darkness and Eby is trying to ensure embarrassing documents never see the light of day.” 

The B.C. government has “paused,” the publication of proactive disclosures and has not indicated when the disclosures will resume. This means government will stop routinely disclosing financial transparency documents like: ministerial briefing notes, purchase card records, travel expenses for ministers and deputy ministers and government contracts delivered without a competitive process.  

“There’s no excuse for the B.C. government to pause financial disclosures,” Binda said. “Politicians spend taxpayer money and taxpayers have the right to see how our money is being spent.” 

This pause in proactive disclosures comes at the same time as the B.C. NDP launched an attack on freedom of information legislation in the Legislative Assembly. 

Bill 9, which has passed first reading, proposes sweeping rollbacks of the provincial Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act that would make it easier for bureaucrats to delay and deny freedom of information requests. 

Recent B.C. government scandals that have come to light due to FOI requests from the CTF include: 

• Thousands of dollars worth of gift card bonuses for bureaucrats, 
• Government budgeting $35,000 for an open-bar reception for bureaucrats, 
• Two B.C. ministers billing taxpayers $3,900 for an Amsterdam “happy hour,” 
• B.C. government spending $354,000 on three novelty “wood-leather,” soccer balls, 
• B.C. bureaucrats billing taxpayers for expensive hotels in Dubai, 
• Finance Minister Brenda Bailey billed taxpayers $6,600 for an SUV-Limousine service for a four-day trip. 

“Instead of rolling back government transparency, Eby and his ministers should stop wasting so much taxpayer money,” Binda said. “This is a government that’s been embarrassed time and again for wasting money and now it’s trying to hide the receipts.”