Brokering Access

Is the business of public officials any of the public’s business? Most Canadians would argue that it is – that we citizens are entitled to enquire and get answers about our government’s actions. Yet, on a practical level, there still exists a struggle between the public’s quest for accountability and the government’s culture of secrecy.

Drawing together the unique perspectives of social scientists, journalists, and access to information (ATI) advocates, Brokering Access explores the history of ATI law and supplies multiple examples of its contemporary application at the federal, provincial, and municipal levels. From restrictions to access of airport security data post-9/11 to censorship under the Access to Information Act to the difficulties of obtaining details on streetscape video surveillance, this book reveals the legal and bureaucratic obstacles citizens face when trying to access government information.

Mike Larsen is an instructor in the Criminology Department of Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Kevin Walby is an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Victoria.

Contributors: Reem Bahdi, Jim Bronskill, Ann Cavoukian, Tia Dafnos, Willem de Lint, Gary Dickson, Yavar Hameed, Steve Hewitt, Sean P. Hier, Suzanne Legault, David McKie, Jeffrey Monaghan, Justin Piché, Jim Rankin, Ann Rees, Fred Vallance-Jones, and Matthew G. Yeager

Ann Cavoukian, Information and Privacy Commissioner for the Province of Ontario:
When freedom of information can be obstructed under false claims of national security, we all need to ask ourselves, how does this reflect upon the nature of our democracy? It is frustrating that books like this one still need to be published. But the fact that they are being published, and they are being read – and I would strongly encourage all Canadians to read this one – is a good sign.