Canadian Privacy Decisions

The complainant alleged that Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) failed to provide records related to a designated substances report. PSPC provided some records but claimed others were not under its control. The Information Commissioner found that these records, although not in PSPC's physical possession, were under its control due to contractual obligations with a third-party contractor. The Commissioner ordered PSPC to retrieve and process these records.

• Whether records held by a third-party contractor were under the control of PSPC for the purposes of the Access to Information Act.
• Whether PSPC conducted a reasonable search for the requested records.

The complainant alleged that the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) improperly withheld records related to an aircraft incident under various exemptions related to personal information and confidential third-party information. The OIC found that TSB failed to provide sufficient evidence to justify withholding the records under the claimed exemptions. Consequently, the Information Commissioner ordered TSB to disclose the records, and TSB agreed to comply.

• Failure to meet the requirements for withholding information under section 19(1) (personal information) of the ATIA.
• Failure to meet the requirements for withholding information under section 20(1)(b) (confidential third-party financial, commercial, scientific or technical information) of the ATIA.
• Failure to meet the requirements for withholding information under section 20(1)(c) (financial impact on a third party) of the ATIA.
• Failure to meet the requirements for withholding information under section 20(1)(d) (negotiations by a third party) of the ATIA.