Bruce Phillips has launched his biggest public campaign to date against release of historical census records in his 1999/2000 Annual Report. We can expect him to launch a media blitz so listmembers might watch out for his appearences in the media. The census records issue is prominently featured in the press release he issued on Monday and is covered in detail in the Annual Report. I can't find much in today's newspapers although the local Vancouver radio stations are reporting his "government dossiers" story at the top of their newscasts. The press release is at: http://www.privcom.gc.ca/english/02_05_b_000516_e.htm The paragraph on census release reads: "Other urgent issues highlighted in the report include:" "Historical Census Records-Commenting on proposals to authorize retroactively the release of 1906 and 1911 census records despite previous promises of confidentiality, Phillips urges that such a measure " be approached with great caution, lest the result diminish confidence in government promises-not just in specific agencies, but also in government that professes to rule with the consent of the governed." In the summary of his comments before the expert panel that will make recommendations to the Minister of Industry on this matter, the Commissioner argues that privacy is not just an individual right but a public right; a right that should not be weakened without a broad public debate (pp. 52-56)." The full 1999/2000 Annual Report and its lengthy comment on census records is on the web at: http://www.privcom.gc.ca/english/02_04_08_e.htm Don Nisbet < dnisbet@vcn.bc.ca