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Privacy Act – Annual Report to Parliament 2020-2021

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Table of Contents

 

Introduction

The Privacy Act (Revised Statutes of Canada, Chapter P-21, 1985) was proclaimed on July 1, 1983. It extends the present laws of Canada that protect the privacy of individuals, and provides individuals with a right of access to personal information about themselves. It also protects the privacy of individuals by denying third parties access to personal information relating to them and enabling them to exercise strict control over the collection, disclosure and use of such information. Necessary exceptions should be limited and specific.

Bill C-58, An Act to amend the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act received royal assent on June 21, 2019, making important improvements to the openness and transparency of government. These are the most significant amendments to the act since it came into force in 1983.

The new legislation amends the Privacy Act to, among other things:

  • create a new exception to the definition of “personal information” with respect to certain information regarding an individual who is a ministerial adviser or a member of a ministerial staff
  • authorize government institutions to provide to other government institutions services related to requests for personal information
  • expand the Governor in Council’s power to amend the schedule to the Act and to retroactively validate amendments to that schedule.Footnote 1

This annual report is tabled in Parliament in accordance with section 72 of the Privacy Act and describes how Western Economic Diversification Canada administered its responsibilities for the reporting period.

WD is committed to both the spirit and intent of the Privacy Act, to ensure the privacy of individuals with respect to their personal information held by the department.

 

Administration of the Act

Departmental Mandate

Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) was established in 1987 to promote the development and diversification of the economy of Western Canada and to advance the interests of the West in national economic policy, program and project development and implementation. The Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development is responsible for this organizationFootnote 2.

The Department operates under the provision of the Western Economic Diversification Act, which came into force on June 28,: 1988. WD’s mandate allows the department to deliver a wide range of initiatives across the West and make strategic investments to build on regional competitive advantages. Its western base enables the department to foster strong partnerships with business and community organizations, research and academic institutions, Indigenous peoples, and provincial and municipal governments. These connections help WD reflect western perspectives in national decision-making.

Departmental Structure

WD employs 443 individuals across Western Canada and in Ottawa, including economists, commerce officers and policy analysts. Specialists in such areas as communications, corporate administration, financial management, human resources, information management and information technology, and procurement provide the policy and programs analysts with support.

WD is headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, and organized into four regional units (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba), with offices located in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, and an office in Ottawa.

Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP)

The Human Resources and Corporate Services unit (HRCS) is responsible for a broad range of services, including Access to Information and Privacy, administered by the unit’s ATIP Centre of Expertise. HRCS is part of the Finance and Corporate Management Directorate located in Edmonton, Alberta.

The ATIP Coordinator, who is supported by the Deputy ATIP Coordinator, one Corporate Services Advisor, and one ATIP Officer, oversees WD’s ATIP Centre of Expertise. The Coordinators fulfill their responsibilities in addition to numerous other functions within the department. The Corporate Services Advisor and ATIP Officer process all access and privacy requests.

The ATIP Centre of Expertise is responsible for the implementation and management of the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act programs and services for WD. Specifically, the ATIP Centre of Expertise:

Other access to information-related activities undertaken by the ATIP Unit in 2020-2021, include:

Activity Total*
Review of parliamentary questions and responses 52
Other activities
Update the ATIP intranet site ?
Preparing and tabling annual reports and statistical reports ?
Participating in Information Management initiatives and providing ATIP guidance ?
Review and update privacy protection business practices, procedures and policy development ?
Regular review and destruction of personal information request files in accordance with retention schedule ?

*questions/reviews/emails/reports etc.

The ATIP Centre of Expertise monitors all personal information requests, and no additional reporting or monitoring is conducted by other departmental officials due to the confidential nature of these requests.

Delegation of Authority

The current delegation order was issued in June 2016. In accordance with section 73 of the old Privacy Act, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, delegated his full powers, authorities and responsibilities to the Executive Director, Finance and Corporate Management (ATIP Coordinator) and Manager, Corporate Administration (Deputy ATIP Coordinator). The delegation also extends limited authority to the ATIP Officer (see Annex B).

Departmental Policies and Procedures

There were no changes made to WD’s Privacy Protection policy suite during fiscal year 2020-2021 as a result of changes in TBS policies or directives, or as result of issues raised by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner or other agents of Parliament.

Training and Outreach

The following training activities, relevant to privacy and personal information, were administered by WD’s ATIP Officer in the reporting period:

Trends and statistics

The following overview provides a summary of the statistical details found in the 2020-2021 statistical report (Annex A: Statistical Report).

Requests received pursuant to the Privacy Act

WD received one request for personal information pursuant to the Privacy Act during this reporting period. That request was carried forward to the next fiscal year and subsequently abandoned.

The accompanying chart shows the number of formal requests for personal information received, as well as the number of privacy-related consultations received by the department over the past five years:

Personal Information Requests / Consultations Received - 5 Year Comparison
Text Version

The multi-column chart shows the comparison of the number of formal personal information received and completed by Western Economic Diversification Canada under the Privacy Act, as well as the number of consultations, over the past five fiscal years - 2016-2017 to 2020-2021.

  2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-2021
Received 2 4 0 1 1
Completed 3 3 0 1 0
Consultations 2 0 0 0 0

Operational costs associated with adminstering the Act

There was only one privacy request received during the period of this report. However, The ATIP Centre of expertise conducted a number of privacy activities including the internal reviews and interviews to respond to an investigation by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner into a GCKey cyberattack.Footnote 3 These costs are reported in the annual statistical report (see see Annex A). The total cost reported was $3,780.

 

Annex A: Statistical Report

Statistical Report on the Privacy Act

Name of institution: Western Economic Diversification Canada

Reporting Period: 2020-04-01 to 2021-03-31

Section 1 - Requests Under the Privacy Act

Received during reporting period 1
Outstanding from previous reporting period 0
Total 1
Closed during reporting period 0
Carried over to next reporting period 1

 

Section 2 - Request Closed During the Reporting Period

2.1  Disposition and completion time

Disposition of Requests Completion Time
1 to 15 Days 16 to 30 Days 31 to 60 Days 61 to 120 Days 121 to 180 Days 181 to 365 Days More Than 365 Days Total
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
No records exist 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Neither confirmed
nor denied		 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2.2  Exemptions

Section Number of Requests
18(2) 0
19(1)(a) 0
19(1)(b) 0
19(1)(c) 0
19(1)(d) 0
19(1)(e) 0
19(1)(f) 0
20 0
21 0
22(1)(a)(i) 0
22(1)(a)(ii) 0
22(1)(a)(iii) 0
22(1)(b) 0
22(1)(c) 0
22(2) 0
22.1 0
22.2 0
22.3 0
23(a) 0
23(b) 0
24(a) 0
24(b) 0
25 0
26 0
27 0
28 0

2.3  Exclusions

Section Number of Requests
69(1)(a) 0
69(1)(b) 0
69.1 0
70(1) 0
70(1)(a) 0
70(1)(b) 0
70(1)(c) 0
70(1)(d) 0
70(1)(e) 0
70(1)(f) 0
70.1 0

2.4 Format of information released

Paper Electronic Other Formats
0 0 0

2.5 Complexity

2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed

Number of Pages Processed Number of Pages Disclosed Number of Requests
0 0 0

2.5.2  Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

Disposition Less than 100 Pages Processed 101-500 Pages Processed 501-1000 Pages Processed 1001-5000 Pages Processed More than 5000 Pages Processed
Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Request Abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Neither confirmed no denied 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2.5.3  Other complexities

Disposition Consultation Required Legal Advice Sought Interwoven Information Other Total
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0
Request Abandoned 0 0 0 0 0
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0

2.6 Closed requests

2.6.1 Number of requests closed within legislated timelines

  Requests closed within legislated timelines
Number of requests closed within legislated timelines 0
Number of requests closed within legislated timelines (%) 0

2.7 Deemed refusals

2.7.1 Reasons for not meeting legislated timelines

Number of Requests Closed Past the Legislated Timelines Principal Reason
Interference with Operations/Workload External consultation Internal consultation Other
0 0 0 0 0

2.7.2 Requests closed beyond legislated timelines (including any extension taken)

Number of Days Past Legislated Timelines Number of Requests Past Legislated Timeline Where no Extension was Taken Number of Requests Past Legislated Timeline Where an Extension was Taken Total
1 to 15 days 0 0 0
16 to 30 days 0 0 0
31 to 60 days 0 0 0
61 to 120 days 0 0 0
121 to 180 days 0 0 0
181 to 365 days 0 0 0
More than 365 days 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0

2.8 Requests for translation

Translation Requests Accepted Refused Total
English to French 0 0 0
French to English 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0

 

Section 3 - Disclosures Under Subsections 8(2) and 8(5)

Paragraph 8(2)(e) Paragraph 8(2)(m) Paragraph 8(5) Total
0 0 0 0

 

Section 4 - Requests for Correction of Personal Information and Notations

Disposition for Correction Requests Recieved Number
Notations attached 0
Requests for correction accepted 0
Total 0

 

Section 5 - Extensions

5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Number of requests where an extension was taken 15(a)(i) Interference with operations 15(a)(ii) Consultation 15(b) Translation purposes or conversion
Further review required to determine exemptions Large volume of pages Large volume of requests Documents are difficult to obtain Cabinet Confidence Section (Section 70) External Internal
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

5.2  Length of extensions

Length of Extensions 15(a)(i) Interference with operations 15(a)(ii) Consultation 15(b) Translation purposes or conversion
Further review required to determine exemptions Large volume of pages Large volume of requests Documents are difficult to obtain Cabinet Confidence Section (Section 70) External Internal
1 to 15 days 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
16 to 30 days 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
31 days or greater   0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

 

Section 6 - Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

6.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations

Consultations Other Government of
Canada Institutions		 Number of Pages
to Review		 Other Organizations Number of Pages
to Review
Received during reporting period 0 0 0 0
Outstanding from the previous
reporting period		 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0
Closed during reporting period 0 0 0 0
Pending at the end of the reporting
period		 0 0 0 0

6.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions

Recommendation Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
1 to 15 Days 16 to 30 Days 31 to 60 Days 61 to 120 Days 121 to 180 Days 181 to 365 Days More than 365 Days Total
All Disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Consult other institution 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

6.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Recommendation Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
1 to 15 Days 16 to 30 Days 31 to 60 Days 61 to 120 Days 121 to 180 Days 181 to 365 Days More than 365 Days Total
All Disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Consult other institution 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

 

Section 7 - Completion Time of Consultation on Cabinet Confidences

7.1 Requests with Legal Services

Number of Days Fewer than 100 Pages Processed 101-500 Pages Processed 501-1000 Pages Processed 1001-5000 Pages Processed More than 5000 Pages Processed
Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed
1 to 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
16 to 30 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
31 to 60 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
61 to 120 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
121 to 180 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
181 to 365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
More than 365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

 

7.2  Requests with Privy Council Office

Number of Days Fewer than 100 Pages Processed Pages Processed
101-500		 Pages Processed
501-1000		 Pages Processed
1001-500		 Pages Processed
More than 5000
Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed Number of Requests Pages Disclosed
1 to 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
16 to 30 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
31 to 60 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
61 to 120 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
121 to 180 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
181 to 365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
More than 365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Section 8 - Complaints and Investigations Notices Received

Section 31 Section 33 Section 35 Court Action Total
0 0 0 0 0

 

Section 9 - Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs)

9.1 Privacy Impact Assessments

Number of PIAs completed 0

9.2 Personal Information Banks

Personal Information Banks Active Created Terminated Modified
  0 0 0 0

 

Section 10 - Material Privacy Breaches

Number of material privacy breaches reported to TBS 0
Number of material privacy breaches reported to OPC 0

Section 11 - Resources Related to the Privacy Act

11.1  Costs

Expenditures Amount
Salaries $2,558
Overtime $0
Goods and Services $1,222
* Professional services contracts $874  
* Other $348
Total $3,780

10.2  Human Resources

Resources Person Years Deticated to the Privacy Activities
Full-time employees 0.030
Part-time and casual employees 0.000
Regional staff 0.000
Consultants and agency personnel 0.010
Students 0.000
Total 0.040

 

Annex B: Delegation Order

Annex B: Delegation Order
Text Version

The Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Diversification, pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, hereby designate the persons holding the positions set out in the schedules attached hereto, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers, duties and functions of the Minister as the head of Western Economic Diversification Canada, under the provisions of the Acts and related regulations set out in the schedule opposite each position. This designation replaces all previous delegation orders.

The Executive Director, Finance and Corporate Management, and the Manager, Corporate Administration, for have full authority under the provisions to the Access to Information Act and its Regulations, and the Privacy Act.

The ATIP Officer has authority under the provisions of the Access to Information Act, Sections 7(a); 8(1); 9; 27(1) and (4); 28(1)(b), (2), (4); and 33; and Section 6(1) of the Regulations, as well as Section 14(a) of the Privacy Act.

Dated, at the City of Ottawa this 10 day of June, 2016
Signed by: The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development

 

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