FYI -- Gordon -------------------------------- Dear Ms. McDonough. As an individual who has voted for the NDP for most of my life, I am writing at this time to express my extreme disappointment with your response to my previous email. Being as the main purpose of my previous email was to provide to you, as attachments, the files containing my submission to the Expert Panel on Access to Historic Census records I find it strange that your response would be to inform me of the existence of that Expert Panel. If you had read my submission you would not be sending me a response quoting Mr. Phillips' views on the "promise" that does not exist. The "canned" response that was sent to me is word for word identical to others that I have seen sent to others who have enquired of you regarding this subject. It is obvious to me that you have not read my original email, nor the attachments thereto, and likely have not read any other email or letter sent to you regarding Access to Historic Census. It is equally obvious that your office staff did not bother to read my message either, likely just looking at the subject line and sending out your standard "canned" response to any enquiry regarding this subject. Had they bothered to read my previous message they would have seen that your standard "canned" response was not appropriate. As the House is currently in recess for the Easter break your staff has obviously not passed my original email to you. Perhaps on receipt of this message they will see fit to do so. In my original email I asked a specific question on how you would vote on a Bill to allow access by the Public, after a reasonable period, of Post 1901 Census records. I would appreciate a response to that question. The tone of your "canned" response leads me to believe that you now oppose the access by the Public to Post 1901 Census records after as reasonable period as provided for in Regulations attached to the Privacy Act. This would appear to be a change of position since your email response of 07/13/99 to Mr. Callard in which you stated "I am pleased to inform you of my support for the Global Gazette's Post 1901 Census Project. Former NDP Industry Critic, Chris Axworthy, as a member of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, has written to the Minister of Industry calling for legislative provisions for the release of census records after a reasonable period of time, such as 92 years." As the individual responsible for the content of the Global Gazette Post 1901 Census Project web pages and the MP's Scoreboard and Correspondence Logs, should I not receive affirmation of your previous position in favour of access I will be changing your gold tick of support to a red cross of opposition. I will also be giving serious consideration regarding who I should be voting for in the next election. Access to Historic Census record is a vital issue to an estimated 7.5 Million plus Canadian citizens (and voters). It is because of the efforts of a very small proportion of those citizens that the Expert Panel was appointed to make recommendations to address the concerns of those citizens. It is to be hoped the report of the Export Panel will recommend release of Census on the same basis as those previously released. Should that not be the case there are lawyers who feel that a challenge in the courts would successful in obtaining access. We are committed to continuing our campaign until we are successful. I would ask that you personally read my previous email and the attachments containing my submission to the Expert Panel. I would then welcome any questions or comments you might have regarding them. Thank you. Gordon A. WATTS 1455 Delia Drive Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 2V9 Tel. (604) 942 6889 Fax. (604) 942 6843 ----- Original Message ----- From: McDonough, Alexa - M.P. <McDonough.A@parl.gc.ca> To: 'Gordon A. WATTS' <gordon_watts@telus.net> Sent: Tuesday, 25 April, 2000 12:00 PM Subject: RE: Access to Historic Census Records Thank you for your email message concerning the release of data from the 1911 Census. The information contained in census documents is of great use to genealogists and historians. The feeling of the NDP Caucus has been that this issue demands a balance be struck between confidentiality and reasonable access. However, the need to restrict access by Canadians to the post-1901 census records is highly questionable, particularly when there is much greater availability of census materials in the US. The federal Privacy Commissioner, Bruce Philips, has announced his strong opposition to release of the data, saying that "people who give information to the government under penalty of law on an unqualified promise of confidentiality are entitled to expect that that trust will be honoured." Mr. Philips also speaks of the right of Canadians to have control over their own information, rather than "people with a vested interest" using and making decisions about that information. In these days of limited privacy and control of our own information, his point is well taken. In response to both calls from historians and amateur genealogists and the concerns of the Privacy Commissioner, the Minister of Industry has appointed an "Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census Records." A copy of the news release and terms of reference are available at http://www.statcan.ca/english/census96/interm.htm . If you wish to make your views known to the Panel on this issue, please feel free to send an email to: expert.panel_comite.experts@statcan.ca For the time being the NDP Federal Caucus is waiting for the decision of the Panel which has been asked to report to the Minister by May 31, 2000. Thank you for sharing your views on this matter with me. Sincerely, Alexa McDonough, MP for Halifax Leader, Canada's New Democrats http://caucus-npd.ndp.ca/ -----Original Message----- From: Gordon A. WATTS [mailto:gordon_watts@telus.net] Sent: April 24, 2000 1:40 PM To: Undisclosed-Recipient:; Subject: Access to Historic Census Records To all Members of Parliament I give greetings. By way of introduction I will advise that I am one of the leaders of a campaign on the Internet seeking Public access to Post 1901 Census records after a reasonable period of time, (currently 92 years following collection,) as provided for by Regulations pertaining to the Privacy Act of Canada. I am sure that over the past two years, all Members of Parliament have been contacted by their constituents regarding this matter. All 301 MPs have been sent e-mail and letters asking (1) their willingness to prepare and present a Bill to obtain access to Post 1901 Census records after a reasonable period, and (2) how they would vote on a Bill to allow access to Post 1901 Census. I have seen many responses from MPs and these have been varied. Several voiced immediate support for access to Historic Census records while a few stated opposition to access. Others, those who bothered to respond to questions regarding access to Historic Census, sent answers giving no clue as to their position on this matter. Many simply acknowledged receipt of the letter, stating "your concerns have been noted" and "have been passed to Industry Minister John Manley" or Statistics Canada. By far the majority of MPs did not see fit to respond in any way to these questions. Those MPs who are "fence-sitters" or who stated opposition to access to Census records had one thing in common -- they all relied heavily on statements released by Statistics Canada regarding a "promise" of "never ending confidentiality" that was supposedly given by the 1905 government of Sir Wilfrid Laurier. Most could not be bothered to respond in their own wording but quoted in part, or in entirety, from those statements released by Statistics Canada. One in particular titled "Access to 1911 and other Post-1901 Census Records" was widely quoted. Obviously those MPs responding in this manner accepted at face value what Statistics Canada and Privacy Commissioner Bruce Phillips have said regarding this "promise". They have made no attempt to seek out the truth of the matter. I have asked both Statistics Canada and Privacy Commissioner Bruce Phillips to "show me the promise" upon which their position of non-disclosure is entirely based. To date they have been unable to do -- simply referring me to the Statutes of 1905/1906, and Instructions to Census Officers and Enumerators of Census for that time period. I can state categorically that at no place in these Statutes and Instructions, nor in any Statues or Instructions since then, is there any mention of a "promise" that confidentiality of information given by respondents to Census will last "forever". The "promise" does not exist. On 12 November 1999 an Expert Panel to study Access to Historic Census Records was appointed with a mandate to bring down a report containing recommendations by 31 May 2000. In an effort to inform and educate, or at least to cause MPs to think about the issue, I have attached to this message the files containing my printed submission to the Expert Panel. Titled "The Myths of Census", this submission is the result of considerable research of the pertinent sources of information relating to the matter at hand. These sources, among others, include: All Statutes relating to Census and Statistics from 1870 to the present . Most Instructions to Officers and Enumerators of Census from 1871 to 1941. Extracted Debates of the House of Commons and the Senate for 1879, 1905 and 1918 Many Proclamations and Orders in Council published in The Canada Gazette Extract from Archivaria 45 (Fall 1998) -- "Counting the Archives In: The appraisal of the 1991 Census of Canada" by Jean-Stephen Piche and Sheila Powell Extract from Canadian Public Administration (Vol. 20, No. 3, pp 481-498) -- "Access to historic census data in Canada: a comparative analysis." by David H. Flaherty Report of the Australian House of Representatives Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs titled "Saving Our Census and preserving our history (May 1998)" I urge each MP to read my submission to the Expert Panel, the submission of the Canadian Historical Association which is posted on the web pages of Statistics Canada, and any other submissions to which you might have access. Read these submissions, and think about the issues involved. With the report of the Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census due by the end of May it is likely that there will soon be a Bill relating to Access of Historic Census records to vote on. In this regard I would again ask each of you the following question: Would you, as a Member of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Canada, having been placed in that position by the voting citizens of your Constituency, vote FOR or AGAINST a Bill supporting release to the Public of Post 1901 Census Reports after 92 years, starting with the 1906 Census? I would welcome any comments or questions you might have regarding my submission to the Expert Panel. To the Francophone Members of Parliament I extend my apologies for not sending this message and the attached files in the French language. I regret that I am not bilingual and neither read, nor write, French. Thank you. Gordon A. WATTS gordon_watts@telus.net Port Coquitlam, BC ICQ # 9183352 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