Greetings All FYI. My latest column on Post 1901 Census issues has been posted and is available at: http://globalgenealogy.com/globalgazette/gazce/gazce107.htm Topics covered in this issue are: Response from Information Commissioner; Our legal action; New Bill on its way?; Requests for 'sample' letters; Gordon Watts letter to MPs; Letters are making a difference; Petitions. For the past few days the servers on which the columns reside have been experiencing some difficulties. Should you have problems accessing my column all I can suggest is to try again later. Thanks to all for your continued support. Happy Hunting. Gordon A. Watts gordon_watts@telus.net Co-chair Canada Census Committee Port Coquitlam, BC http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census en francais http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index_f Permission to forward without notice is granted

To all Committee Members and Residents of Quebec:- Is the total number of GOLD ticks stuck at 179? Or, could it be some have received replies and did not forward them? Several weeks ago I printed off the pages of the scoreboards for the various provinces and am astounded with some of the ones I find who have earned GREEN symbols courtesy of a secretary. Nova Scotia and Yukon are 100% GOLD and only ONE left to reply in Manitoba. Ontario has been answering very well but we have the only RED X which possibly could remain that way. Several of us are working on changing the 20 GREEN and 22 BLUE. Quebec has only 15 who have agreed to census release. When the Canadian census records are released, these will augment the many records kept in the many Quebec parishes and societies. Petitions would be a great help as we anticipate there could be a census bill in the future. Let's lessen the 11 GREEN (including The Rt. Hon. Paul Martin) and the 49 who have never replied. Check the following sites -- note the totals for each province http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Senscore1.htm Petitions are downloadable from http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/ Should any person ask his or her Member of Parliament or Senator about their opinion re census release, it is preferred we have it sent to us in a note from the person. However, we have accepted verbal messages. Every person in Canada has a Member of Parliament and a Senator -- do not be shy about asking them -- you are one of the constituents. Should you enjoy writing to many, please copy in both Gordon Watts and myself. Members from United States are invited to contact the person in the area his or her ancestors lived -- there are many petitions coming from United States. Hoping the colour scheme of the scoreboards are changed by the end of next week -- at least the BLUE -- NO ANSWER. Muriel M. Davidson muriel_davidson@sympatico.ca Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee

Below is a copy of the reply I received today from Senator Gerald Comeau/ Now I wonder why there was a no beside his name on the tally Shirley Dear Ms. Lane I., have no objection whatsoever to release the 1911 census if in fact the current laws on the book dictate that the release is authorized Regarding Acadian church records kept by the priests, there was no legislative promise to keep these records private and confidential. Gerald Comeau,

Hi Shirley. The Red X of opposition shown for Senator Comeau is there based on his responses in 2001 and 2002 to questions of his support for access to Historic Census records. In reading those responses on the Senator's Scoreboard he maintained that there had been a promise of never-ending confidentiality given to the people of Canada and that such 'promise' should not be broken. In addition, during Senate debate regarding Bill S-13 Senator Comeau was probably the most vocal of the Senators in his opposition to the Bill. He made constant references to breaking a 'promise' of never ending confidentiality. In reading his comments during these debates there is no doubt whatsoever that he opposed information from Census being made available at any time. Extracts of the Hansard records of those debates are on the Post 1901 Census Project website and I invite all to read them. His response to you indicates that in the time since then he may have mellowed somewhat but I am somewhat reluctant to change his symbol on the Scoreboard without a stronger statement of support from him. He states he has no objection to the release of 1911 records 'if in fact the current laws on the book dictate that the release is authorized'. Mr. Comeau, as well as all MPs and Senators have been advised a number of times regarding the legislative clauses that authorize access to 92-year-old Census records. I would question any statement that any of them are not aware of that legislation. I will attempt to obtain a stronger statement of support for access to the 1911 records and pending that will consider changing his symbol on the Scoreboard. Happy Hunting. Gordon ----- Original Message ----- From: Shirley To: CANADA-CENSUS-CAMPAIGN-L@rootsweb.com Cc: Muriel M. Davidson ; Gordon A. Watts Sent: Wednesday, October 27, 2004 1:06 PM Subject: Reply from Comeau Below is a copy of the reply I received today from Senator Gerald Comeau/ Now I wonder why there was a no beside his name on the tally Shirley Dear Ms. Lane I., have no objection whatsoever to release the 1911 census if in fact the current laws on the book dictate that the release is authorized Regarding Acadian church records kept by the priests, there was no legislative promise to keep these records private and confidential. Gerald Comeau,

To Ken Dryden, MP:- Dear Sir:- Congratulations on winning the election in your riding and as you change from hockey to politics you will find much of the "play" is the same. Hockey is a spectator sport -- my husband and I are avid hockey fans and you can be certain, the World Hockey games were watched. However, we are quite content now watching the Brampton Battalion games -- a young team but interesting. In politics, we also find many spectators -- many of whom are seeking his or her family history, genetic problems, lost ancestors, Home Children sent to Canada between 1860 to 1930 -- 25% identified. Please check the following Ontario scoreboard -- the * means NEW http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index3.htm#ON Find your name and note the BLUE ? -- this means you have not replied if others have written to you. Click on your name -- I will be forwarding the constituency address to Gordon A. Watts, Co-Chair of the Canada Census Committee There is a very simple way to get rid of the BLUE ? -- reply to this email and hopefully be in agreement with release of the 1911 and later Canadian census records. There is a great deal of information at http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index.htm/ The 1911 records were supposed to have been released June 1, 2003, following the 92-year rule for release to the Nationall Library and Archives Canada. However, a non-elected person, the Chief Statistician Dr. Ivan P. Fellegi has yet to release these -- nor has the Prime Minister directed this gentleman to do so. Also, in addition to above, the 1911 census records were the last ones prior to World War One -- many are listed on them who did not return. Sincerely hope you will agree to vote in favour of any census release bill when it will be presented in the House of Commons. Committee members are avid watchers of CPAC -- a great channel! Sincerely, Muriel M. Davidson muriel_davidson@sympatico.ca Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee 25 Crestview Avenue, Brampton, ON L6W 2R8 905-451-3542

Good-Morning from Canada, Hilary!! It would appear that we have a majority of Members of Parliament in favour of any census bill -- but very often, MPs are absent from the House of Commons during any voting sessions that might happen. There is also the Senate of Canada -- Whenever there is a bill, it must be passed in both Houses -- Check http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Senscore1.htm You will notice there are vacancies, but at present there are only 44 out of 101 in agreement with census release. The others are 5 with RED X - meaning NO; 19 Non-Committal, which means either the secretary replied or undecided; PLUS 33 who have never replied - messages have been sent to them. As an American who had ancestors in Canada -- we invite PETITIONS -- which would be your VOICE in the Senate of Canada. http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/index.htm/ Send a note to your cousins in Toronto, where many have not replied, to check if his or her MP or Senator are in agreement and to gather signatures on both House of Commons and Senate petitions. You would use the Non-Resident petition and it would be mailed to my address for usage by Senator Lorna Milne. Our governmental system is not too different than in United States -- where bills must be passed in both Houses. As for firing of Dr. Fellegi or others, we will leave this to the elected or appointed politicians. However, letters may be written to him. Muriel M. Davidson muriel_davidson@sympatico.ca Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee ----- Original Message ----- From: "Hilary Henkin" <hilary@proppersource.com> To: <CANADA-CENSUS-CAMPAIGN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 26, 2004 8:17 AM Subject: Re: [CCC] Post-1901 Census -- Let's Get To Work! > Dear all, > I checked the current scoreboard, and it seems that by far and away, we > have a majority of elected representatives in support of releasing the > census records immediately. In every province except Quebec, a definite > majority of reps already support the effort, and virtually no one is > against the concept. > > Since I'm not from Canada, I have a question: would this level of support > be enough to "influence" Mr. Fellegi to follow the law, or Mr. Martin to > pressure or fire Mr. Fellegi? > > Hilary Henkin > Atlanta, Georgia > Grandparents met and married in Toronto; I still have cousins there)

Hi Hilary. As I write this the total number of MPs that have indicated support for access to Historic Census Records stands at 178. This is 10 less than the 188 supportive members shown prior to our Federal Election. With the election we lost 48 supportive MPs but in recent days we have regained 38 and we are getting more supportive responses daily. We hope that before long we might surpass the original 188 Gold Ticks of support. This being said, there is no visible evidence that our Scoreboard totals have influenced Dr. Fellegi in any way, although our letters, email and petitions surely are certainly applying pressure in his direction. We must keep this pressure going. Also, to date there has been no evidence that the government -- either past or present -- has had any inclination to simply tell the Chief Statistician to obey the law. Dr. Fellegi started out by saying he could not release Post 1901 Census records because the government of the day had given respondents to Census a promise of never-ending confidentiality. He was unable to produce any evidence that such a promise had ever been made. He then claimed that he was explicitly prohibited by law from transferring the records to the National Archivist for subsequent public access. He was unable to produce such a law. He next claimed that should the people of Canada be aware that information provided to Census would be made available after 92 years they would be less likely to complete the Census either fully or truthfully. The people of Canada have been aware since at least the passage of the Access to Information and Privacy Acts in 1980 - 1983 that their information would be made available after 92 years. Since the passage of this legislation there have been five National Censuses taken with no evidence that knowledge of future access to respondents information had any affect on participation at all. In fact, responding to questions by myself contacts in Statistics Canada indicated that no known study of this had been taken following any of these Censuses. Documentation accompanying responses of the Information Commissioner to complaints against the refusal of Statistics Canada to permit the release of the 1911 National Census was illuminating. It contained excerpts from sworn testimony by the Chief Statistician. Through questioning under oath Dr. Fellegi admitted that there were no legal constraints against transferring control of records for the 1906 and 1911 Censuses to the National Archivist for subsequent public access. He took the position that he was not prohibited from transferring the records but neither was he obligated to do so. He stated that it was a 'policy issue'. I have long maintained that, as now admitted by Dr. Fellegi, his refusal to transfer control of the records to the National Archives was a simple matter of policy. That policy was, in my opinion, devised by Dr. Fellegi and it has always been under his control. He could have changed his policy at any time simply by returning control of the records in question to the National Archivist. To date he has refused to do so. After all this time I think it unlikely that Paul Martin would 'fire' Dr. Fellegi even though he is well past what is considered the 'normal' age of retirement. (Many believe that he should take his well deserved retirement.) Dr. Fellegi was appointed by a former Prime Minister and retains his position as Chief Statistician 'at pleasure' of the current Prime Minister. During his tenure he has developed Statistics Canada into a highly regarded and world renown statistical agency. I would be the last person to take that away from him. However, insofar as his position on public access to 92-year-old Census records is concerned, in my opinion he has been 'out to lunch'. We anticipate that before too long we are likely to see another government Bill brought down. We hope that should that happen those drafting the Bill will have listened to us and that it will allow the same access that we currently have for records up to 1906 -- with no added conditions or restrictions. Time will tell. Happy Hunting. Gordon ----- Original Message ----- From: "Hilary Henkin" <hilary@proppersource.com> To: <CANADA-CENSUS-CAMPAIGN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 26, 2004 5:17 AM Subject: Re: [CCC] Post-1901 Census -- Let's Get To Work! Dear all, I checked the current scoreboard, and it seems that by far and away, we have a majority of elected representatives in support of releasing the census records immediately. In every province except Quebec, a definite majority of reps already support the effort, and virtually no one is against the concept. Since I'm not from Canada, I have a question: would this level of support be enough to "influence" Mr. Fellegi to follow the law, or Mr. Martin to pressure or fire Mr. Fellegi? Hilary Henkin Atlanta, Georgia Grandparents met and married in Toronto; I still have cousins there)

Dear all, I checked the current scoreboard, and it seems that by far and away, we have a majority of elected representatives in support of releasing the census records immediately. In every province except Quebec, a definite majority of reps already support the effort, and virtually no one is against the concept. Since I'm not from Canada, I have a question: would this level of support be enough to "influence" Mr. Fellegi to follow the law, or Mr. Martin to pressure or fire Mr. Fellegi? Hilary Henkin Atlanta, Georgia Grandparents met and married in Toronto; I still have cousins there)

To all:- Please check both the following scoreboard:- http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm At present we have 178 GOLD symbols meaning positive answers should there be another bill for release of the 1911 census records. At present, only Nova Scotia and Yukon are 100% in favour of census release -- but by morning this could also include MANITOBA. Readers of the various lists should check to see if his or her Member of Parliament is in favour of census release -- if not, ask the person -- we accept quoted replies but prefer ones that are emailed directly to us. There is a great deal of work to be done in both Ontario and Quebec. Two-part messages are available to be sent to MPs in Quebec -- English and French -- we need to lessen the 49 BLUE (unanswered/no reply) -- although messages have been sent. There could be a bill for release of the 1911 census -- we have worked before and since March 1999 -- so let's combine our efforts and contact every one -- a copy is requested. PETITIONS are needed -- these are OUR voices in both the House of Commons and Senate of Canada. Download from http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/index.htm/ The Senate and House of Commons are for Canadians and both may be signed -- the Non-Resident are for friends from other places. Please, let's see what we can do between now and the end of November -- more news coming as provinces go 100%. Muriel M. Davidson muriel_davidson@sympatico.ca Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee Brampton, ON http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~downhome/post1901census.htm/

1901 Census ReleaseGreetings All. With the supportive response given by Manitoba MP Joy Smith the number of Gold Ticks shown on the MP Scoreboard is now at 178. Should the sole remaining blue question mark for the province be changed to a Gold Tick, Manitoba will become the second to be Solid Gold -- joining Nova Scotia which already has that distiction. Keep your letters going to your MPs, and send us the responses you get from them. Happy Hunting. Gordon ----- Original Message ----- From: Smith, Joy - M.P. To: muriel_davidson@sympatico.ca Sent: Monday, October 25, 2004 3:33 PM Subject: 1901 Census Release Dear Ms. Davidson, This email is in response to your email regarding the Canada Post-1901 Census Records. I would like to reply in favour of your cause. Sincerely, Joy Smith, M.P. Kildonan-St. Paul, MB

To all -- My computer had over 1,000 messages, but I did not mind. On Friday my daughter, Lynden Cowan and her daughter Michelle announced to me that I had to pack for at least two nights -- they were KIDNAPPING me to celebrate my 80th birthday!! I was not told where we were going -- but kept receiving hints re passport (United States???), but we ended up, with Lynden's husband Michael as driver at the Chimo Hotel in Ottawa. It was a great weekend -- said "Hello" to several MPs who happened to be in the hotel, visited the wonderful museum in Hull on Saturday. Sunday we had breakfast at an interesting spot where I learned daily usage of eggs were approximately 5 or 6 crates of 15 dozen eggs per crate. Then a wonderful trip to part of my beloved Gatineau Hills, including Moorside and Kingswood, lots of fall colours, plus a gorgeous sunset -- until we reached the 401 West. Will reply to many who have sent cards -- it was a great mini vacation!! Muriel

CensusThank you very much for your reply to my email Mr. Richardson (sent by your assistant). It stated that you support the preservation of Canada's historical documents. I have forwarded your reply to our Co-Chairmen so that they can record it on our site. You can monitor your response by going to the following site: http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm You can also go to this same site and download petitions (House of Commons & Senate) if you wish to support this with a signature. Once again, thank you for your support, (Miss) Adele Turner North Vancouver, B C -----Original Message----- From: Richardson, Lee - Assistant 1 [mailto:RichaL0@parl.gc.ca] Sent: Monday, October 25, 2004 6:16 AM To: ajturner@shaw.ca Subject: Census Adele, Mr. Richardson supports the release of the Post 1901 Historical Census. Jeff Henwood Legislative Assistant to Lee Richardson, MP Calgary Centre 763 Confederation Building 613-944-5024

Adele I wrote to Daryl Kramp over 6 weeks ago. I am still waiting for his answer to "my " letter and I am one of his constituents!!!. I even hand delivered the letter to his office here in Belleville. I just might call Monday to see if his staff even gave it to him.??? However I am pleased that he is in favour of our cause. Good work. Carol (tweetybird) Home page:<http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~tweetybirdgenealogy/> Visit my home page for "Home Children" information and other "world wide" links plus various passenger lists. Family Tree; <http://www.tweetybirdfamily.bravehost.com/> Searching : Hart, Haslip, Jackson, Stevens, Little, Budge, Chipman, Welch, Russell, Johns & Glover

Dear Mr. Kramp: Yesterday, I received a letter from you in response to my email of October 13th. Many thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to reply. I was most pleased to read that you are in support of the preservation of our Post 1901 Historical Census. I have forwarded your reply to our Co-Chairmen so that they can record it on our site. You can monitor your response now by going to the following site: http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm You can also go to this same site and download petitions (House of Commons & Senate) if you wish to support this with a signature. Once again, thank you for your support, (Miss) Adele Turner North Vancouver, B C Below is a transcript of the letter I received from Mr. Kramp so that it can post it to our site and I quote: House of Commons Ottawa Suite 902, Justice Bldg Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6 Tel: (613) 992-5321 Fax: (613) 996-8652 krampd@parl.gc.ca October 15, 2004 Miss A.J.Turner Canada Census Committee Member-Save our Census #67 - 1947 Purcell Way North Vancouver, B.C. V7J 3H4 Dear Miss Turner: Thank you for your letter of October 13, 2004, expressing support for the release of post-1901 census records. I appreciate knowing your views on this issue and am please to be given the opportunity of providing you our position. I, along with my Conservative colleagues, support the preservation of census records and the subsequent transfer of these records to the National Archives for public release. We believe that keeping the records confidential for the historical 92-year period is an adequate length of time, and that this is generally consistent with the practice in Britain and the United Stats, where records are kept confidential for 100 and 72 years respectively. Thank you again for writing and if I can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me. Yours sincerely, (signature: Daryl Kramp) Daryl Kramp,M.P. Prince Edward-Hastings Constituency 1 Millennium Parkway Belleville, Ontario K8N 4Z5 Tel: (613) 969-3800 1 866-471-3800 Fax: (613) 969-3803

Thank you very much for your reply to my latest email Mr. Carrie and by stating that you support the preservation of Canada's historic documents. I have checked all past responses from all potential MP's and your message never made it to me. Otherwise, it would have been posted to our site for all interested parties to read. I have forwarded your reply to our Co-Chairmen so that they can record it on our site. You can monitor your response now by going to the following site: http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm You can also go to this same site and download petitions (House of Commons & Senate) if you wish to support this with a signature. Once again, thank you for your support, (Miss) Adele Turner North Vancouver, B C -----Original Message----- From: Colin Carrie MP, Oshawa [mailto:colin@colincarriemp.ca] Sent: Saturday, October 23, 2004 7:03 AM To: ajturner@shaw.ca Subject: Re: Waiting for a reply re: Post 1901 Historical Census Miss Turner, Thanks for your email. I am almost certain that I responded to this same question during the run-up to election day in June. You may want to check your responses during the election timeframe. Nonetheless...I along with the majority of my Conservative colleagues, support your position on the post-1901 historic census. Please feel free add my support to your website. Good luck with all your efforts. Sincerely, Dr. Colin Carrie MP Oshawa Carrie, Colin - M.P. wrote: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Adele Turner [mailto:ajturner@shaw.ca] Sent: October 13, 2004 4:43 PM To: Carrie, Colin - M.P. Subject: Waiting for a reply re: Post 1901 Historical Census Mr. Colin Carrie: First of all, please accept my congratulations and best wishes for winning your Ontario riding. Please do us proud while serving all Canadians across the country and to finally take a personal stand on whether you desire to preserve Canadian history. Don't forget, you are answerable to ALL Canadians not just to those in your riding....when you vote in the House of Commons, you vote for all Canadians and your vote effects us all. I need to know HOW YOU stand on the Post 1901 Historic Census? Do you support its preservation or its destruction? I sure hope in the future that it will not be typical of your office to ignore correspondence sent to you or worse still by sending a "thank you letter.then stating I have passed on your concerns to Mr. Emerson whose responsibility this belongs". I HAVE written to him too and I heard nothing from him. If I eventually do, probably it will be another "thank you for your letter and your concerns, I have passed it on to Statistics Canada". PLEASE DON'T PASS THE BUCK AGAIN. I just want an answer to my question. It can't be that difficult to do take a stand. My goal, as a member of the Canada (Save Our) Census Committee, is to draw your attention to the Chief Statistician's refusal to release control for the 1911 Census records to the National Archivist. According to law, the 1911 Census should have been released June 1, 2003 and to date this has not happened. Legally, the Chief Statistician should immediately transfer all national treasures such as the 92-year-old Canadian Census to the control of the National Archivist for safekeeping and not destroyed as Dr. Ivan Fellegi wishes. You may or not be aware that for the past seven or so years, there has been a public campaign by genealogists and historians have been seeking to regain the public access to Historic Census records after 1901 that has been improperly, (and believed illegally), withheld from public access by Canada's Chief Statistician, Dr. Ivan P. Fellegi. The campaign has sought to regain the same unrestricted access to records after 1906 that has been available for 240 years of Census records up to that time. We have made submissions and provided more than 65,000 petition signatures in an effort to voice our concerns for all who are searching for their historic family information. A history of our struggles with the Chief Statistician is well documented on our website, www.globalgenealogy.com/Census. Included here are findings of an Expert Panel, and the results of cross-Canada Town Hall meetings, which all show agreement that there was misinterpretation on the part of the Chief Statistician with relation to the instructions given to Enumerators. Our law presently states that release of Census data must occur 92 years after collection. During the last session of Parliament there was an attempt to push through Bill S-13, supposedly to 'correct' a deficiency, (a deficiency only perceived by the Chief Statistician). Thankfully Parliament closed down in time to prevent passage, which ultimately would have done nothing to correct anything, except add an additional 20 more unnecessary years to the release time, and provide the Chief Statistician with more control. Most other countries in the world vary in release date from 70 to 100 years. Canadian taxpayers fund a Heritage Ministry, and what is more meaningful to our heritage and history than knowing and understanding our origins and ancestry, to say nothing of valuable medical information to be found. Mr. Wayne Easter has stated thus "In this age when criticism is leveled at our educational institutions for not making Canadian history courses readily available to our students, this attempt by Stats Can to further remove Canadians from their recorded historical roots must not be allowed to happen". The only resolution acceptable must be the same unrestricted public access for records after 1906, as is presently available for the existing 240 years of records up to that date. Access to these records is currently permitted under The Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and no legislative changes should be necessary for us to view these or any future records. What is required is a government which will live up to the pre-election promises the Prime Minister made of less interference by bureaucrats, and as well would require the Chief Statistician to obey the laws of the land. To date we have not had such a government. After all, the Chief Statistician does not have the legal right to enact or propose laws. His is an appointed position. Perhaps he has served his usefulness plus he has passed his legal retirement age when it is compulsory for all Canadians to retire. We would request that you introduce a Government Bill which would add to the Statistics Act, a single clause similar to the following: "Original schedules of Census or authentic copies thereof shall, not later than thirty (30) years following collection, be transferred to the care and control of the National Archivist for subsequent public access in accordance with provisions of the Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Regulations attached thereto." In closing, I hope to hear in the near future that an "original" promise voted into law by government will finally be kept. Over the years, so many promises have been made to the Canadian people have been broken by government. A couple of the broken promises made by government are the discontinuation of the GST plus the Income Tax that was to be discontinued after WWI. Neither promise was ever kept when they got voted into office. And those are but two unkept promises. So PLEASE don't give me the same old rhetoric about the Right to Privacy. My Dad at age 90 years wasn't even born when the 1911 Census was conducted. So whose Right to Privacy are you pretending to preserve? It certainly isn't my Dad's. So please help us correct this potentially tragic destruction to Canada's past and its history. I would really appreciate receiving confirmation by email whether you support our cause or not so that we can post your reply on our website. Then these letters will cease. Thanking you in advance for your PROMPT reply to this email Yours respectfully, (Miss) Adele J. Turner Canada Census Committee Member - Save our Census #67 - 1947 Purcell Way North Vancouver, BC V7J 3H4 604-987-5137 ajturner@shaw.ca

Thank you very much for your reply to my email Mr. Siksay and stating that you support the preservation of Canada's historical documents. I have forwarded your reply to our Co-Chairmen so that they can record it on our site. You can monitor your response by going to the following site: http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm You can also go to this same site and download petitions (House of Commons & Senate) if you wish to support this with a signature. Once again, thank you for your support, (Miss) Adele Turner North Vancouver, B C -----Original Message----- -----Original Message----- From: Siksay, Bill - M.P. [mailto:Siksay.B@parl.gc.ca] Sent: Friday, October 22, 2004 10:19 AM To: Adele Turner Subject: RE: Still waiting patiently for your reply after two months... Here is the response that has been provided to questions such as yours. Normally, the critic is the member who would respond on behalf of all the caucus. The letter below was provide by Jack Layton's office. Dear Friend: Thank you for your correspondence about the release of census records through the National Archives. I understand that 1906 and 1911 census information can be released through the National Archives under existing legislation and is consistent with the intent of Parliament at the time and with the National Archives of Canada Act, and Privacy Act and Privacy Regulations. My NDP caucus colleagues and I support the release of census information after 92 years, in the belief that most Canadians would accept this as a reasonable balance of the right to privacy and the collective interest in enhancing the study of history. Once again, thank you for writing. Bill Siksay, MP Burnaby-Douglas ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- From: Adele Turner [mailto:ajturner@shaw.ca] Sent: October 22, 2004 2:00 PM To: Siksay, Bill - M.P. Subject: Still waiting patiently for your reply after two months... Mr. Siksay: You still have not answered my question, "Do you support the preservation OR the destruction of the Post 1901 Historical Census?" You advised me that you forwarded my letter to Brian Masse for comment. Our Committee already has Brian Masse's reply posted to our site. Please see below which I now quote: Name: Brian Masse Political Party: New Democratic Party Constituency: Windsor West Province: Ontario Telephone: (613) 996-1541 Fax: (613) 992-5397 Email: Masse.B@parl.gc.ca or Masseb0@parl.gc.ca Address: House of Commons, Ottawa K1A OA6 Constituency Address: 336-300 Tecumseh Road East Plaza 300 Windsor, Ontario N8X 5E8 07/05/2002 - letter from MP Brian Masse to Vicki Moorhead. Although Mr. Masse is recently elected he has obviously done some research on the Census issue. While he has not specifically stated his support, his letter is viewed as sufficiently supportive to award him a gold tick. Dear Vicki, Thank you for your email supporting the release of census records through the National Archives after a 92-year waiting period. I understand that this issue has received much attention and debate during the past few years including several Private Members' bills in both the House of Commons and the Senate. These bills have received strong support from genealogists and historical researchers across Canada and abroad. While census records up to 1901 have been available to researchers, records from the 1906 census onwards are not being made available due to Statistics Canada's interpretation of current legislation. The main thrust of the Private Members' bills relate to a key recommendation of the Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census Records that also called for the records to be released after 92 years. The final report of the panel was made public in December 2000 and can be found at the following site: http://www.statcan.ca/english/census96/finalrep.htm Statistics Canada had engaged the polling firm Environics to conduct town hall meetings and focus groups across Canada to further look at this issue Information about the outcome of these meetings may be obtained from the Environics website. Meanwhile, a confidential legal opinion, prepared in August 2000 by a Department of Justice lawyer, has come to light. This opinion states that 1906 and 1911 census information can be released through the National Archives under existing legislation. While suggesting new legislation to clarify the situation for censuses after 1918, the opinion states that release of this information appears consistent with the intent of Parliament at the time and with the National Archives of Canada Act, and Privacy Act and Privacy Regulations. Based on all of this evidence, I believe that most Canadians would accept the release of 1911 Census records as a reasonable balance of the right to privacy and the collective interest in enhancing the study of history. I appreciate your interest in this matter and hope that I was able to address your concerns. Please feel free to contact me again on this or any other federal issue of concern. As your federal Member of Parliament for Windsor West, I look forward to continuing to serve our community. Yours sincerely, Brian Masse, MP Windsor West BM/ec CEP 232 -----Original Message----- From: Siksay, Bill - M.P. [mailto:Siksay.B@parl.gc.ca] Sent: Tuesday, August 31, 2004 6:59 AM To: ajturner@shaw.ca Cc: Masse, Brian - M.P. Subject: RE: PLESASE REPLY: OTTAWA August 31st, 2004 Miss Adele J. Turner #67 - 1947 Purcell Way North Vancouver, BC V7J 3H4 604-987-5137 ajturner@shaw.ca Dear Miss Turner, Thank you for your recent e-mail message to me regarding the release of post-1901 census data to the National Archivist. I apologize for not responding to you sooner, but it has taken longer than expected to get my offices set up after the election. I have taken the liberty of forwarding your material to my colleague Brian Masse, MP for Windsor West, and NDP Critic responsible for issues related to Statistics Canada. I believe that the issue you address in your message falls within his area of expertise, so I have sent it to him for his consideration. Thank you again for contacting me on this issue. Sincerely, Bill Siksay, MP Burnaby-Douglas WLS/drf CEP 232

Cencus Records Thank you very much for your reply to my email Mr. Goldring and stating that you support the preservation of Canada's historical documents. I have forwarded your reply to our Co-Chairmen so that they can record it on our site. You can monitor your response by going to the following site: http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm You can also go to this same site and download petitions (House of Commons & Senate) if you wish to support this with a signature. Once again, thank you for your support, (Miss) Adele Turner North Vancouver, B C -----Original Message----- From: Komarnicki, Ed - Assistant 1 [mailto:KomarE0@parl.gc.ca] Sent: Thursday, October 21, 2004 11:12 AM To: ajturner@shaw.ca Subject: Cencus Records October 19th, 2004 Adele Turner ajturner@shaw.ca Dear Adele: Thank you for your request regarding my position on the release of census information relating to post 1901 census records. The Conservative Party supports the preservation of census records and the subsequent transfer of these records to the National Archives for public release. We believe that keeping the records confidential for the historical 92-year period is an adequate length of time, and that this is generally consistent with the practice in Britain and the United States, where records are kept confidential for 100 and 72 years respectively. I personally support the position that the Party has taken. Thank you for your interest in this matter and keeping me informed of your viewpoints. Yours truly, Ed Komarnicki, MP Souris-Moose Mountain.

Thank you very much for your reply to my email Mr. Goldring. I have forwarded it to our Co-Chairmen so that they can record your reply. I hope that this means that we CAN count on your support when this BILL comes to a vote on the floor of the House of Commons. You can monitor your response by going to the following site: http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index6.htm You can also go to this same site and download petitions (House of Commons & Senate) if you wish to support this with a signature. Once again, thank you for your support, (Miss) Adele Turner North Vancouver, B C -----Original Message----- From: Goldring, Peter - M.P. [mailto:Goldring.P@parl.gc.ca] Sent: Thursday, October 21, 2004 9:53 AM To: Adele Turner Subject: 1901 Historical Census Dear Ms. Turner, Thank you for your letter expressing support for the release of post-1901 census records. I appreciate knowing your views on this issue and am pleased to be given the opportunity of providing you with our position. The Conservative Party supports the preservation of census records and the subsequent transfer of these records to the National Archives for public release. We believe that keeping the records confidential for the historical 92-year period is an adequate length of time, and that this is generally consistent with the practice in Britain and the United States, where records are kept confidential for 100 and 72 years respectively. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to phone my office at (613) 992-3821. Sincerely, Peter Goldring Member of Parliament Edmonton East

The Information Commissioner is preparing an application to the Federal Court to compel the release of the 1911 census which I believe has a good chance of success. Assuming his application under the Access to Information Act is successful, we will get access to that census without having to make any deals or concessions. The next one due for release is the 1922 census which we want to see in 2013. Perhaps the privacy hysteria in government will have passed before then and we will be able to convince the powers that be to pass the necessary legislative amendments to "clarify" or ensure that all census are released after 92 years starting with the 1922 one. Lois Sparling

Bill Campbell of the Alberta Family Histories Society has received his letter from the Information Commissioner and returned his form consenting to a Federal Court Action being commenced on his behalf for the release of the 1991 census. lois Sparling