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w w w .insidehalton.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, July 7 , 2 0 1 7 | 6 Editorial A fa r cry from transparency In the run-up to the last federal election, here is what the Trudeau Liberals said they would do on the subject of transparency: "We will amend the Access to Information Act so all government data and information is made open by de fault in machine-readable, digital formats. We will also ensure that Access to Information ap plies to the Prime Minister's and Ministers' offices, as well as administrative institutions that support Parlia ment and the courts." Unfortunately, you can still fn d those words on the web, only now they seem laughable compared to what the Liberals actually did to modernize Access to Infor mation. To be fair, this frst major update to transparency laws in three decades does do some things. The changes will give real teeth to the information commissioner through the ability to force government agencies and ministries to release information. Under the status quo, all the commissioner can do is recom mend release, and ultimately take the matter to court -- a long and laborious process. The watchdog will also have the authority to issue di rectives about timeliness. Last year, of more than 75,000 requests, only 64 per cent were completed within the legislated 30 days. With this, the watchdog should be able to at least reduce that problem. But here is where the changes fall short, and ultimate ly are a failure compared to what the Liberals promised. The disclosure rules still will not cover the Prime Minis ter' s Office or Cabinet documents. In a weak attempt to cover that broken promise, there is a new measure that would compel ministries to disclose certain informa tion, but the government will control what information, which largely invalidates that as an improvement. The new rules still allow officials to black out any in formation they deem necessary. Now, they have to offer some justifcation, but the central problem remains. This is hardly new. When in opposition, the Harper Conservatives were rabid activists on the need to radi cally increase transparency and accountability. Once elected, that commitment disappeared and they ended up among the most opaque governments in recent memory. According to a Toronto Star report, cabinet confdentiality was invoked a record 3,100 times during 2013-14, 40 per cent more than the previous year. But that was the Harper government. The Trudeau Liberals successfully convinced Canadians they re ally would be different on a host of issues, transparency among them. The reality is quite different. We can take some comfort the new rules call for the laws to be updated every fv e years. The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 5046 Mainway, Unit 2, Burlington ON L7L 5Z1 or via email to ablackburn@ oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. "Connected to your Community" 5046 Mainway Unit 2, Burlington ON L7L 5Z1 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Classified Advertising: (905) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 Volume 55 | Number 53 The Oakville Beaver is a division of ·* metrolandmedia * * Connected to your community® Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. NEIL OLIVER Vice -President and Group Publisher of Metroland West KELLY MONTAGUE Regional General Manager DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director ANGELA BLACKBURN Managing Editor RIZIERO VERTOLLI M yV iew Photography Director LORI ANN GZOVDANOVIC Business Manager Gender-based violence is no laughing matter ender-based violence remains a seri ous issue across our country. Oakville North-Burlington is not im m une to this issue, and there is tremendous w ork be ing done locally to raise awareness and provide support to survivors of gender-based violence. The Status of Women Committee, of which I am vice-chair, provided input to the govern ment on important issues like sexual assault and gender-based violence. I w as pleased to see our w ork reflected in several government announcements recently. Bill C-51 will amend the Criminal Code to update the sexual assault provisions around consent. In addition, our committee's recommenda tions informed the announcement made by the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for the Status of Women, when she announced Can ada's Gender-Based Violence Strategy June 19. The strategy lays the foundation for greater MARK DILLS Director of Production G MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution Pam Damoff Oakville North-Burlington MP KIM M O SSM AN Circulation Manager OAKVILLE action and is based on three pillars that will improve Canada's overall response to genderbased violence: prevention; support for survi vors and their families; and the promotion of responsive legal and justice systems. In 1982, NDP MP Margaret Mitchell rose in the House of Com m ons to ask a question about violence against women. She w as loudly heckled and had to remind her colleagues in the House that this subject w as no laughing matter. Beaver. Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by ' . I · Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association see Important on p.7 Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Pud by Steve Nease G jp p JL Defending principles to inspire public trust Ontario Press Council The Oakville Beaver is a mem ber o f th e Ontario Press Council. The council is located a t 8 0 Gould St., Suite 2 0 6 , Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M 7. Phone 4 1 6 -3 4 0 -1 9 8 1 . Advertising is accepted on th e condition that, in the event o f a typographical error, th a t portion o f advertising space occupied by the eironeous item, together with a reasonable allowance fo r signature, will not be charged for, b u t th e balance o f th e advertise m ent will be paid for a t th e applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.