The Information Commissioner of Canada is an independent
ombudsman
An ombudsman ( , also ) is a government employee who investigates and tries to resolve complaints, usually through recommendations (binding or not) or mediation. They are usually appointed by the government or by parliament (often with a sign ...
and an officer of
parliament of Canada
The Parliament of Canada () is the Canadian federalism, federal legislature of Canada. The Monarchy of Canada, Crown, along with two chambers: the Senate of Canada, Senate and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, form the Bicameral ...
who reports directly to the
House of Commons of Canada
The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...
and the
Senate of Canada
The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...
.
The commissioner's work is supported by the Office of the Information Commissioner, which was established in 1983 under the ''Access to Information Act'' (ATIA) – Canada's freedom of information legislation.
The office assists individuals and organizations who believe that federal institutions have not respected their rights under the ATIA. More specifically, the Office of the Information Commissioner:
* carries out investigations and dispute-resolution efforts to resolve complaints
* monitors federal institutions’ performances under the ATIA
* represents the commissioner in court cases, and provides legal advice on investigations and legislative matters
The information commissioner provides arms-length oversight of the federal government's access to information practices. The commissioner encourages and assists federal institutions to adopt approaches to information-sharing that meet the objectives of the ATIA, and advocates for greater access to information in Canada.
Whenever possible, the commissioner relies on persuasion to solve disputes, asking for a federal court review only if an individual has been improperly denied access and a negotiated solution has proved impossible.
Caroline Maynard is the current information commissioner, appointed, for a seven-year term, on March 1, 2018.
Information commissioners of Canada
There have been six information commissioners since the office was established in 1983. They hold office for seven-year terms (''Access to Information Act'', s. 54).
*
Caroline Maynard (March 2018 – present)
*
Suzanne Legault (2010 – February 2018)
*Suzanne Legault (2009-2010 – acting)
*
Robert Marleau (2007-2009 – retired)
*
John Mercer Reid (1998 – 2006)
*
John W. Grace (1990 – 1998)
*
Inger Hansen (1983 – 1990)
See also
*
Coordination of Access to Information Requests System
References
External links
Office of the Information Commissioner of CanadaDecisions database
{{authority control
Federal departments and agencies of Canada
Government agencies established in 1983
Commissioner
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...
Officers of the Parliament of Canada
*Information Commissioner
Canada, Information Commissioner