Access to Information and Privacy

 

Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) is fully committed to both the spirit and intent of the Access to Information Act to ensure openness and transparency within the Department, and the spirit and intent of the Privacy Act, which is based on the principles of open government and to ensure the privacy of individuals with respect to their personal information held by the Department is protected.

The Acts provide Canadian citizens, permanent residents or any person (or entity) present in Canada with the legal right to obtain information, in any form, that is under the control of a government institution.

The Access to Information Act gives individuals a right to access records under the control of a federal government institution. The Act upholds the principles that government information should be available to the public, exceptions to the right of access should be limited and specific, and decisions on the disclosure of government information should be reviewed independently of government.

The Privacy Act protects the privacy of individuals with respect to personal information about them held by a government institution and provides individuals with a right to access and to request correction to this information where the person believes there is an error or omission.

This Act provides individuals with a basic right to know why their information is collected by the government, how it will be used, how long it will be kept and to whom access will be provided.