Greetings all. Industry Minister Brian Tobin released the following announcement for the Press at the same time the Report of the Expert Panel on Access to Historic Census Records was released. Please read it carefully. This reads to me like further delays in seeing a government Bill to allow public access to Historic Census Records. Mr. Tobin used phrases that are suspiciously similar to those used by Statistics Canada in the earlier part of our campaign. As we directed many email and letters to former Industry Minister John Manley it would appear that we must now concentrate on convincing Mr. Tobin of our desire for immediate action rather than months, or possibly years, of further delays. Mr. Tobin's email addresses are Tobin.Brian@ic.gc.ca and Tobin.B@parl.gc.ca . Please make Mr. Tobin feel welcomed in his new portfolio as Industry Minister and Minister responsible for Statistics Canada. Happy Hunting. Gordon A. WATTS gordon_watts@telus.net Canada Census Committee Port Coquitlam, BC Keep up to date on Post 1901 Census information at http://www.globalgenealogy.com/census and http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Farm/7843/poll.html Download and circulate Post 1901 Census Petitions now from http://www.globalgenealogy.com/census/petition.htm This message has been posted to the Alberta-L, Canada-Census-Campaign-L, Can-British-Columbia-L, Census-Chat-L, Colchester, Lunen-Links-L, Nova-Scotia-L, Ontario-L, PictouRoots, Roots-L, Watts-L, and Wiltshire-EMI-L mail lists. Permission to forward without notification is granted. =================================== FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 15, 2000 Minister Tobin Releases the Report from the Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census Records Ottawa -- Brian Tobin, Minister of Industry and Minister Responsible for Statistics Canada, today released the report from the Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census Records. In releasing the report, Mr. Tobin conveyed the government's appreciation to the members of the Expert Panel for their work and for the time and effort they invested in this important matter. The Minister indicated that the issues at stake are complex and far reaching. The government is committed to protecting the privacy rights of Canadians who were given an assurance of confidentiality at the time they completed the 1911 Census while, at the same time, the government must consider the legitimate needs of genealogists and others for access to historical census records. In light of these concerns the Minister indicated that further broad based consultation with all Canadians is needed. This consultation will take place as part of the already announced administrative and legislative review of the Access to Information and the Privacy Acts. The government's primary reason for undertaking additional consultation is to ensure that, if access to historical census records is provided, this is done in a manner that respects the government's deep commitment to privacy. To find out more about the report from the Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census Records, please visit the web site at www.statcan.ca. For further information, please contact Heidi Bonnell, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Industry at (613) 995-9001.