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Annual Report to Parliament on the Administration of the Access to Information Act 2023-2024

Table of Contents

Introduction

We are pleased to table the Annual Report to Parliament on the administration of the Access to Information Act (the Act) for fiscal year 2023-2024, as required under section 94 of the Act. ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ is not reporting on behalf of wholly owned subsidiaries or non-operational institutions.

This report is also prepared and tabled in accordance with section 20 of the Service Fees Act.

Note: The Department is referred to in this report as ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ (GAC). Its legal name, however, remains the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, as set out in the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act.

Purpose of the Access to Information Act

The purpose of the Access to Information Act (ATIA) is to enhance the accountability and transparency of federal institutions in order to promote an open and democratic society and to enable public debate on the conduct of those institutions.

Part 1 of the Access to Information Act extends the present laws of Canada to provide a right of access to information in records under the control of a government institution in accordance with the principles that government information should be available to the public, that necessary exceptions to the right of access should be limited and specific and that decisions on the disclosure of government information should be reviewed independently of government; and decision on the disclosure of government information should be reviewed independently of government.

Part 2 of the Access to Information Act sets out requirements for the proactive publication of information.

Mandate of the Institution

¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ, under the leadership of the Minister of Foreign Affairs; the Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development; and the Minister of International Development, is responsible for advancing Canada’s international relations, including:

¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ manages Canada’s diplomatic and consular relations with foreign governments and international organizations, engaging and influencing international players to advance Canada’s political, legal and economic interests, including poverty reduction, the empowerment of women and girls, the promotion of a rules-based international order, international peace and security, human rights, inclusive and accountable governance, peaceful pluralism, inclusion and respect for diversity, and environmental sustainability.

In support of efforts to eradicate global poverty and contribute to a more peaceful, prosperous, and inclusive world, the Department manages the majority of Canada’s international assistance. The Department also leads coordinated Canadian responses to crises and natural disasters abroad, including the provision of needs-based humanitarian assistance.

¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ also manages Canada’s international platform—a global network of missions in approximately 110 countries that supports the international work of the Department and partner departments, agencies, and co-locators.

To improve and maintain market access for Canadian businesses, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ leads the negotiation of bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral trade agreements, the administration of export and import controls, as well as the management of international trade disputes. The Department also provides advice and services to help Canadian businesses succeed abroad and attract foreign direct investment to Canada, and supports international innovation, science, and technology.

The Department delivers consular services and provides travel information to Canadians.

It also supports global peace and stability and addresses international security threats such as terrorism, transnational organized crime and the proliferation of weapons, and materials of mass destruction.

¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ develops and implements policy and programming based on analysis of available evidence, including through consultation and engagement with Canadians and international stakeholders. The Department is responsible for fostering the development of international law and its applications in Canada’s foreign relations.

The department’s legal responsibilities are detailed in the 2013 .

For more information on the ministers’ mandated commitments, see the .

The Access to Information and Privacy Protection Division (The ATIP Division) is responsible for the administration of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act (PA), including the processing of requests and consultations. The director of the ATIP Division reports to the corporate secretary who, in turn, reports to the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Organizational Structure

In 2023-2024, the ATIP Division had 69 full-time equivalent positions to fulfill the Department’s obligations under both the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act. During the fiscal year, the ATIP Division filled, on average, 50 of those 69 positions and relied on up to seven ATIP consultants.

The ATIP Division is led by a director, who manages the teams that administer the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act:

All employees are working within a hybrid model, with telework from home and in-office presence at headquarters (125 Sussex Drive). ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ did not have any regional ATIP staff during the fiscal year 2023-2024. 

During the fiscal year 2023-2024, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ did not have any service agreements pursuant to section 96 of the Access to Information Act.

Part 2 - Proactive Publication

During the reporting period, responsibility for proactive disclosure under Part 2 of the Access to Information Act was managed by several different departmental leads (see table below). No specific position or group monitored departmental compliance overall.

Delegation Order

Consistent with section 95 of the Access to Information Act, the Minister’s authority is delegated to the Deputy Ministers, to the Corporate Secretary, to the Director of the ATIP Division, and to the Deputy Directors of the ATIP Division.

A copy of ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ’s signed Designation Order is provided in Annex A.

Performance 2023-2024

Number of Requests

In 2023-2024, the Department received 1904 new requests for information under the Access to Information Act, an increase of 20% compared to the 2022-2023 fiscal year and an increase of 69% compared to the average of the previous three reporting periods. A total of 1259 requests were carried over from the previous fiscal year (2022-2023); 833 requests outstanding from the 2021-2022 fiscal year and 426 requests were outstanding from more than one reporting period.

During the same reporting period,1209 requests were completed; a small decrease of 0.5% compared to the 2022-2023 fiscal year and an increase of 30% compared to the average of the previous three reporting periods.

Figure 1
Text version
Access to Information Requests2020-20212021-20222022-20232023-2024
Received754103415931904
Completed520105412161209

Active Requests Carried Over to the Next Reporting Period

At the end of reporting period, 37% of ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ’s outstanding requests were on time. The carry-over of active files at the end of fiscal year 2023-2024 was 1954.

2016-20172017-20182018-20192019-20202020-20212021-20222022-20232023-2024Total
On time1021048141528721
Late04844601543456181233
Total 1410456020248611461954

Extensions

Of the 1209 requests closed during the reporting period, GAC invoked 728 extensions pursuant to section 9:

Compliance Rate

The compliance rate is defined as the percentage of access to information requests that the Department responded to within the deadline required under the Act. In 2023-2024, the departmental compliance rate for ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ was 50%. This means that 50% of Access to Information requests received a response beyond the deadline. The compliance rate for the reporting period decreased by 5 percentage points compared to the previous reporting period.

Figure 2
Text version
Compliance Rate2020-20212021-20222022-20232023-2024
Percentage18%43%55%50%

Completion Time

During the reporting period, the Department closed a total of 73 requests in 15 days or less (6%), 173 requests closed within 16-30 days (14%), 139 requests closed within 31-60 days (12%), 262 requests closed within 61-120 days (22%), 175 requests closed within 121-180 days (14%), 209 requests closed within 181-365 days (17%), and 178 requests took over 365 days to complete (15%).

Figure 3
Text version

Completion Time

This pie graph illustrates the percentage of requests that were completed during the reporting period within the following timeframes: 1 to 15 days (6%), 16 to 30 days (14%), 31 to 60 days (12%), 61 to 120 days (22%), 121 to 180 days (14%), 181 to 365 days (17%) and over 365 days (15%).

Disposition of Completed Requests

Of the 1209 Access to Information requests closed in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, 174 were all disclosed (14%), 570 were disclosed in part (47%), 24 were all exempted (2%), 25 were all excluded (2%), 171 had no records in existence (14%), 13 were transferred (1%), 231 were abandoned (19%) and 1 request was neither confirmed nor denied that we had records (<1%).  

Figure 4
Text version

Disposition of Completed Requests

This pie graph illustrates the percentage of requests that were completed during the reporting period with the following dispositions: All Disclosed (14.39%), Disclosed in Part (47.15%), All Exempted (1.99%), All Excluded (2.07%), No records exist (14.14%), Request transferred (1.08%), Request abandoned (19.11%), Declined to act (0.00%) and Neither confirmed nor denied (0.08%)

Consultations from Other Institutions

Given its mandate and various responsibilities at the international level, the Department plays a key role under the Act on behalf of other institutions of the Government of Canada. Specifically, the Department consulted foreign governments and organizations on behalf of other federal government institutions when the latter needed to determine whether they could release records that originated abroad.

During the reporting period, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ received 421 consultations from other government institutions (9743 pages) and 14 consultations from other organizations (comprising 178 pages). Furthermore, the Department closed 430 consultation requests and reviewed 28,626 pages.

Of the consultation requests closed during the reporting period, 50 requests were closed in 15 days or less (12%), 38 requests closed within 16-30 days (9%), 54 requests closed within 31-60 days (13%), 78 requests closed within 61-120 days (18%), 57 requests closed within 121-180 days (13%), 50 requests closed within 181-365 days (12%), and 103 requests took over 365 days to complete (23%).

Number of Days TakenNumber of Requests ClosedPercentage
0-15 days5012%
16-30 days389%
31-60 days5413%
61-120 days7818%
121-180 days5713%
181-365 days5012%
365+ days10323%

Staffing

In 2023-2024, the ATIP Division had 47.14 full-time equivalent dedicated to access to information activities. This represented a 42.72% increase from the previous reporting period, thus demonstrating that the ongoing recruitment strategies were efficient in an ongoing hybrid work context.

Figure 5
Text version
Access to Information Total Human Resources in FTE2020-20212021-20222022-20232023-2024
Total45.6240.4430.0347.14

Training and Awareness

The ATIP Division continued to develop tools, guidance and training for ATIP analysts, ATIP liaison officers and subject matter experts across ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ.

Again, during the reporting period, the ATIP Division benefited from its Professional Development Program (PDP), which allows the Department to train and promote its ATIP analysts from junior (PM-01) to senior (PM-05) levels. This long-standing program continues to be highly successful in addressing recruitment, retention, and succession planning issues. Most of the employees working in the ATIP Division are already part of the PDP and are eligible for promotion to the next level once they meet the required objectives. The PDP aims to build a more robust ATIP capacity within ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ by “growing its own”, thereby addressing the shortage of analysts and team leaders across the federal ATIP community.

ATIP Training was also provided to the ATIP Division at ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ. During the reported fiscal year, the ATIP Division hired a consultant to deliver an introductory course on the administration of the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act. The course was delivered to 28 employees from June 20 to June 22, 2023. Furthermore, on December 4, 2023, the same consultant provided an in-depth training on the application of exemptions and exclusions of the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act, 37 employees attended the training entitled “Exemptions provisions of ATIP” which was geared for ATIP analysts and ATIP team leaders. Lastly, on February 22, 2024, a different consultant provided training to 43 employees on the application of subsection 69(1) of the Access to Information Act. The training provided insight on how to identify confidences of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and the necessary steps to undertake when excluding information pertaining to subsection 69(1) of the ATIA.

Additionally, the ATIP Division provided the following training modules to GAC employees:

Due to GAC’s rotational employee structure, ATIP training sessions were made available upon request and attendance varied from one-on-one training to group training with up to 76 participants. During the fiscal year, a total of 57 training sessions were delivered to 691 ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ employees. Of these, 50 presentations were delivered virtually using MS Teams and 7 training sessions were delivered in person.

Policies, Guidelines, and Procedures

Step by Step guide 

During the reporting period, the ATIP Division at ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ developed a comprehensive step-by-step manual to help both junior and more experienced ATIP Analysts in navigating the A-To-Z process of both Access to Information Act and/or Privacy Act requests at ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ. The manual is divided into multiple chapters covering topics such as: detailing the specific steps an analyst must follow when handling new requests, steps when reviewing responsive records, and the actions required before completing the approval process and disclosing the information to the requester. Each chapter was drafted one at a time and was reviewed by management who provided comments and insight before the guide was implemented and shared with the ATIP Division.

Guidelines

Throughout the fiscal year, the ATIP Division also implemented the following three guidelines:

  1. How to handle the names of ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ officials and exempt staff at ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ under the Access to Information Act.
  2. Processing cellular numbers under the Access to Information Act at ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ.
  3. Processing an Access to Information Act request which contains personal information of the requester.

Each guideline was drafted individually and reviewed by the management team who provided comments and insights before the guidelines were shared with the entire division and implemented.

Outreach

During fiscal year 2023-2024, the responsibility of retrieving and providing recommendations for the disclosure pursuant to the ATIA or PA shifted from director general offices to assistant deputy minister (ADM) Offices. Since the implementation of the ATIP ADM Tasking initiative, two ADMOs contacted the Corporate Secretary/ATIP Division to get a sense of their branch’s performance in relation to their response time and administration of the ATIA and PA. During the 2023-2024 fiscal year, the ATIP Division, was represented by the Corporate Secretary and/or the Director of the Access to Information Division who delivered presentations to the Indo-Pacific Branch and the Emergency Management, Legal and Consular Affairs Branch at their executive meetings.

ATIP at the Corporate Management Meeting

During the 2023-2024 fiscal year, the Corporate Secretary of ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ responsible for overseeing the administration of the Access to Information Act attended GAC’s Corporate Management Meeting (CMC) on November 8, 2023. At the meeting, the Corporate Secretary emphasized the importance of responding promptly to ATIP requests and of reducing the backlog of ATIP taskings. Best practices were discussed to best achieve these goals.

HR Strategies

The implementation of the hybrid work model proved beneficial for the retention of staff in the ATIP Division. However, recruitment of skilled analysts, at GAC as in other government institutions, remains a challenge, especially at the senior analyst level. Despite the challenges, there have been recent successes, including onboarding five new employees in the 2023-2024 fiscal year. The ATIP division also actively utilizes its Professional Development Program resulting in the promotion of one senior analyst.  

These initiatives have aided in the ATIP Division’s successes in the 2023-2024 fiscal year.

Proactive Publication Under Part 2 of the ATIA

The Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development is a government institution for the purposes of Part 2 of the Access to Information Act

The Department is subject to the following proactive publication requirements:

Legislative RequirementSectionPublication TimelineInstances% on timeDisclosure Responsibility
All Government Institutions as defined in section 3 of the Access to Information Act
Travel Expenses82Within 30 days after the end of the month of reimbursement299Unable to verify*Offices of senior officials
Hospitality Expenses83Within 30 days after the end of the month of reimbursement666Unable to verify*Offices of senior officials
Reports tabled in Parliament84Within 30 days after tabling7100%Corporate Secretary
Government entities or Departments, agencies, and other bodies subject to the Act and listed in Schedules I, I.1, or II of the Financial Administration Act
Contracts over $10,00086Q1-3: Within 30 days after the quarter
Q4: Within 60 days after the quarter
3167%
100% (Publication was an average of 31 days after the quarter)
Chief Financial Officer
Grants & Contributions over $25,00087Within 30 days after the quarter450% (Publication was an average of 25 days after the quarter)Chief Financial Officer
Packages of briefing materials prepared for new or incoming deputy heads or equivalent88(a)Within 120 days after appointment0N/ACorporate Secretary
Titles and reference numbers of memoranda prepared for a deputy head or equivalent, that is received by their office88(b)Within 30 days after the end of the month received1267% (Publication was an average of 40 days after the end of the month received)Corporate Secretary
Packages of briefing materials prepared for a deputy head or equivalent’s appearance before a committee of Parliament88(c)Within 120 days after appearance1060% (Publication was an average of 146 days after appearance)Corporate Secretary
Government institutions that are departments named in Schedule I to the Financial Administration Act or portions of the core public administration named in Schedule IV to that Act (i.e., government institutions for which Treasury Board is the employer)
Reclassification of positions85Within 30 days after the quarter2100%Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Human Resources
Ministers
Packages of briefing materials prepared by a government institution for new or incoming ministers74(a)Within 120 days after appointment1100%Corporate Secretary
Titles and reference numbers of memoranda prepared by a government institution for the minister, that is received by their office74(b)Within 30 days after the end of the month received1267% (Publication was an average of 40 days after the end of the month received)Corporate Secretary
Package of question period notes prepared by a government institution for the minister and in use on the last sitting day of the House of Commons in June and December74(c)Within 30 days after last sitting day of the House of Commons in June and December250% (Publication was an average of 32 days after the last sitting day in the House of Commons)Corporate Secretary
Packages of briefing materials prepared by a government institution for a minister’s appearance before a committee of Parliament74(d)Within 120 days after appearance580% (Publication was an average of 134 days after appearance)Corporate Secretary
Travel Expenses75Within 30 days after the end of the month of reimbursement553Unable to verify*Corporate Secretary
Hospitality Expenses76Within 30 days after the end of the month of reimbursement15Unable to verify*Corporate Secretary
Contracts over $10,00077Q1-3: Within 30 days after the quarter
Q4: Within 60 days after the quarter
3

1

67%
100% (Publication was an average of 31 days after the quarter)
Chief Financial Officer
Ministers’ Offices Expenses

*Note: This consolidated report is currently published by TBS on behalf of all institutions.

78Within 120 days after the fiscal year1100%Chief Financial Officer

* During the time period covered by this report, the Department did not have an electronic verification system that could confirm that these transactions were entered by the prescribed deadlines. Manual verification was the only means to verify that each transaction was posted within 30 days. GAC is exploring the means to verify this electronically moving forward.

During the reporting period, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ published its proactive publication requirements on the following websites:

  1. OpenGAC

Across ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ, standard operating procedures are in place to meet proactive disclosure requirements. For example:  

For travel and hospitality expenses (Sections 75, 76, 82 and 83) the process is outlined on an internal page with guidelines and procedures to assist all officials required to disclose their travel and hospitality expenses, including step by step instructions and tools. Additionally, GAC is developing a new platform for the disclosure of travel and hospitality expenses, which will entail data being published concurrently on the GAC website and the Open Government websites. This tool will simplify the tracking of proactive disclosure compliance and provide a single point of access for Canadians. Launch is anticipated in summer 2024.

For contracts over $10,000 (Sections 77 and 86), the Department is currently developing procedures to improve data integrity during the creation of procurement transactions in its Financial Administration System (FAS), where data for proactive disclosure is extracted from.

The Corporate Secretariat updated the standard operating procedures for the publication of memoranda titles (Sections 74(b) and 88(b)) and packages of briefing materials prepared by a government institution for a minister’s and deputy minister’s appearance before a committee of Parliament (74(d) and 88(c)). As a result of these efforts, the timely publication of materials increased significantly. For example, 67% of briefing note titles were published on time in the 2023-24 fiscal year, compared to 8% last fiscal year. Similarly, on-time publication of briefing material prepared for appearances by ministers before parliamentary committees increased to 80% (from 31%), and to 40% (from 9%) for briefing packages for deputy ministers.

Initiatives and Projects to Improve Access to Information

New Request Processing Software Solution

The current case management software used to process requests is becoming obsolete and will no longer be supported by the vendor in the coming years. GAC is using this opportunity to replace the legacy software and leverage new technology to increase efficiencies in our service delivery and to better handle the large volume of ATIP requests.​ Deployment of the new solution is anticipated for fiscal year 2025-2026.

Open Government Departmental Outreach Initiatives

¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ’s Enterprise Data Management (EDM) team is responsible for coordinating and maximizing the release of departmental information and data on the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) Open Government portal, as designated by the Directive on Open Government. Prior to May 2023, the EDM team conducted extensive outreach activities both at HQ and missions abroad, reaching almost 300 divisions. The early outreach aimed to introduce the mandate and highlight publishing requirements, which resulted in an initial growth from 50 to 159 open information assets for 2022-2023. The method for 2023-2024 shifted to a targeted approach. This was accomplished by locating reports, contacting data stewards, and requesting permission to publish to the portal. This proved to be an effective outreach tool and resulted in an increase in the number of open information assets published to the portal to 468 by March 31, 2024. The EDM team strives to increase awareness and highlight publishing requirements. These outreach activities continue to yield growing numbers of open information assets month over month as teams become increasingly aware of reports that are suitable for publishing on the TBS Open Government portal. 

Summary of Key Issues and Actions Taken on Complaints

Complaints received and completed

During the 2023-2024 fiscal year, 248 complaints were made to the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada regarding access to information requests to the Department. The reasons for the complaints were as follows:

Reason for ComplaintNumber of Complaints
Collection11
Delay140
Extension73
Miscellaneous3
Refusal – Exclusion3
Refusal – Exemptions18

Over the course of the reporting period, 115 complaints against the Department were closed. The findings on closed complaints were as follows:

Complaint FindingsNumber of Complaints
Discontinued68
Not Well-Founded11
Resolved3
Well-Founded33

The ATIP Division continues to operate a team dedicated to managing complaints from the Office of the Information Commissioner. This team serves as the primary point of contact between ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ and the OIC, working closely and collaboratively to strengthen relationships and improve ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ’s ATIP program performance.

Active Complaints Carried Over to the Next Reporting Period

2018-20192019-20202020-20212021-20222022-20232023-2024Total
Active011111227241

Fees and Costs

The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected by the institution.

With respect to fees collected under the Access to Information Act, the information below is reported in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of the Service Fees Act.

Enabling authority: Access to Information Act

Fee payable: $5.00 application fee is the only fee charged for an ATI request.

Total Revenue: $6,330.00

Fees waived: To address requests that may produce a high volume of records, pertain to multiple subjects, or may result in a duplication of efforts, the Department separates pre-existing requests and waives additional application fees. In 2023-2024, the Department waived $3,190.00 for 638 requests.

In accordance with the Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act (issued on May 5, 2016) and the changes to the Access to Information Act that came into force on June 21, 2019, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ waived all fees prescribed by the Act and Regulation, other than the $5 application fee set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations.

Cost of operating the program: The ATIP divisional costs of administering the Access to Information Act in fiscal year 2023-2024 was $5,571,693. These costs are comprised of $3,919,158 in salaries and overtime, as well as operating costs totaling $1,652,535 which includes $1,463,880 in professional service contracts. These figures do not represent the indirect costs associated with the overall processing throughout the Department, including the salary costs of the time investment required by our subject matter experts for the retrieval and review of records, their approval authorities oversight, or our departmental liaisons.

Monitoring Compliance

Ongoing Reporting

The ATIP Division prepares and distributes a weekly statistics report to the ATIP Division’s management team that tracks the number of requests that were received and closed, as well as any emerging trends and performance statistics. The report also allows for comparison of workload and completion rates in relation to the previous year to identify changes in ATIP processing.

Additionally, an active tasking report is generated and posted to the intranet weekly to identify all current active taskings within the Department. This report is available for all offices of primary interest (OPIs) to view and lists all open taskings by branch, highlighting late files.

During fiscal year 2023-2024, the Director General and Corporate Secretary overseeing the administration of the Access to information Act and Privacy Act continued to send the ATIP Twice Monthly Performance Report to deputy ministers, assistant deputy ministers, and directors general, outlining the number of active taskings and compliance within each of the branches/special bureaus. The intent of this procedure is to sensitize senior management to the backlog of active taskings, thereby increasing compliance.

New in the reporting period, the ATIP Division implemented the ATIP Quarterly Report. ATIP Quarterly Reports are also sent to deputy ministers, assistant deputy ministers, and directors general, outlining branches and special bureaus' performance on completed taskings and compliance under the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act. This report's intent was to recognize the ATIP work completed throughout the year by branches and bureaus by keeping a close eye on their ATIP compliance rate.  

Finally, a weekly report is shared within the Department that includes summaries of upcoming Access to Information requests soon to be disclosed and facilitating the review of proposed record disclosures.

Limiting Inter-Institutional Consultations

During the reporting period, the ATIP Division monitored superfluous inter-institutional consultations by having experienced ATIP team leaders oversee the relevant records before they were sent out for consultation. By doing so, ATIP team leaders were able to reduce the number of consultations sent to the other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations outside the Government of Canada, reducing the amount of time to process requests and not overburdening other departments with unnecessary consultations.

Frequently Requested Types of Information

Throughout fiscal year 2023-2024, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ did not monitor or review frequently requested types of information for the purpose of making the information available by other means.

Right of Access in Contracts, Information Sharing Agreements, and Information Sharing Arrangements

Throughout fiscal year 2023-2024, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ did not monitor or review supporting measures to ensure the right of public access is reflected in contracts, information sharing agreements and information sharing arrangements.

Proactive Disclosure

Throughout fiscal year 2023-2024, ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ did not formally monitor the institutions accuracy and completeness of proactively published information under Part 2 of the Act. Lead divisions managed their requirements independently; however, no specific positions were identified as responsible for ensuring each proactive publication requirement was met.

Annex A: Designation Order

Figure 6
Text version

Access to Information Act Designation Order

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto, or the persons acting in those positions, to exercise the powers and perform the duties and functions of the Minister of Foreign Affairs as the head of a Government institution under the sections of the Act set out after each position in the schedule. This designation replaces the designation dated October 2, 2009.

Schedule

Position

  1. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (all sections)
  2. Deputy Minister for International Trade (all sections)
  3. Deputy Minister for International Development (all sections)
  4. Associate Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (all sections)
  5. Director General, Corporate Secretariat (all sections)
  6. Director, Access to Information and Privacy Protection Division (all sections)
  7. Deputy Directors, Access to Information and Privacy Protection Division (all sections)

The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, P.C., M.P.
Ottawa, July 4, 2017

Annex B: ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ 2023-2024 Statistical Report

Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ

Reporting period: 2023-04-01 to 2024-03-31

Section 1: Requests Under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests

Request TypeNumber of Requests
Received during reporting period1,904
Outstanding from previous reporting periods1,259
Outstanding from previous reporting period833
Outstanding from more than one reporting period426
Total3,163
Closed during reporting period1,209
Carried over to next reporting period1,954
Carried over within legislated timeline511
Carried over beyond legislated timeline1,443

1.2 Sources of requests

SourceNumber of Requests
Media426
Academia172
Business (private sector)46
Organization49
Public428
Decline to Identify783
Total1,904

1.3 Channels of requests

SourceNumber of Requests
Online1,453
E-mail91
Mail360
In person0
Phone0
Fax0
Total1,904

Section 2: Informal Requests

2.1 Number of informal requests

TypeNumber of Requests
Received during reporting period1,219
Outstanding from previous reporting periods5

Outstanding from previous reporting period

5

Outstanding from more than one reporting period

0
Total1,224
Closed during reporting period1,217
Carried over to next reporting period7

2.2 Channels of informal requests

SourceNumber of Requests
Online403
E-mail816
Mail0
In person0
Phone0
Fax0
Total1,219

2.3 Completion time of informal requests

Completion Time
1 to 15
Days
16 to 30
Days
31 to 60
Days
61 to 120 Days121 to 180 Days181 to 365 DaysMore Than 365 DaysTotal
9189320510001,217

2.4 Pages released informally

Less Than 100
Pages Released
100-500
Pages Released
501-1000
Pages Released
1001-5000
Pages Released
More Than 5000
Pages Released
Number of RequestsPages ReleasedNumber of RequestsPages ReleasedNumber of RequestsPages ReleasedNumber of RequestsPages ReleasedNumber of RequestsPages Released
0000000000

2.5 Pages re-released informally

Less Than 100
Pages Re-released
100-500
Pages Re-released
501-1000
Pages Re-released
1001-5000
Pages Re-released
More Than 5000
Pages Re-released
Number of RequestsPages
Re-released
Number of RequestsPages
Re-released
Number of RequestsPages
Re-released
Number of RequestsPages
Re-released
Number of RequestsPages
Re-released
95619,97021744,9602717,6501624,92516,500

Section 3: Applications to the Information Commissioner on Declining to Act on Requests

TypeNumber of Requests
Outstanding from previous reporting period0
Sent during reporting period0
Total0
Approved by the Information Commissioner during reporting period0
Declined by the Information Commissioner during reporting period0
Withdrawn during reporting period0
Carried over to next reporting period0

Section 4: Requests Closed During the Reporting Period

4.1 Disposition and completion time

Disposition of RequestsCompletion Time
1 to 15
Days
16 to 30
Days
31 to 60
Days
61 to 120 Days121 to 180 Days181 to 365 DaysMore Than 365 DaysTotal
All disclosed224284253187174
Disclosed in part0284414690134128570
All exempted050736324
All excluded0161521025
No records exist269383216122171
Request transferred1120000013
Request abandoned58432320113838231
Neither confirmed nor denied01000001
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner00000000
Total731731392621752091781,209

4.2 Exemptions

SectionNumber of Requests
13(1)(a)176
13(1)(b)28
13(1)(c)16
13(1)(d)2
13(1)(e)0
144
14(a)7
14(b)2
15(1)381
15(1) - I.A.*0
15(1) - Def.*0
15(1) - S.A.*0
16(1)(a)(i)2
16(1)(a)(ii)0
16(1)(a)(iii)0
16(1)(b)2
16(1)(c)6
16(1)(d)1
16(2)32
16(2)(a)0
16(2)(b)0
16(2)(c)25
16(3)0
16.1(1)(a)0
16.1(1)(b)0
16.1(1)(c)0
16.1(1)(d)0
16.2(1)0
16.30
16.4(1)(a)0
16.4(1)(b)0
16.50
16.60
1712
18(a)2
18(b)5
18(c)0
18(d)0
18.1(1)(a)0
18.1(1)(b)1
18.1(1)(c)0
18.1(1)(d)0
19(1)324
20(1)(a)2
20(1)(b)107
20(1)(b.1)73
20(1)(c)19
20(1)(d)10
20.10
20.20
20.40
21(1)(a)218
21(1)(b)257
21(1)(c)19
21(1)(d)4
224
22.1(1)0
2374
23.10
24(1)2
260

* I.A.: International Affairs; Def.: Defence of Canada; S.A.: Subversive Activities

4.3 Exclusions

SectionNumber of Requests
68(a)10
68(b)0
68(c)0
68.10
68.2(a)0
68.2(b)0
69(1)4
69(1)(a)23
69(1)(b)1
69(1)(c)0
69(1)(d)4
69(1)(e)10
69(1)(f)2
69(1)(g) re (a)45
69(1)(g) re (b)0
69(1)(g) re (c)12
69(1)(g) re (d)4
69(1)(g) re (e)18
69(1)(g) re (f)0
69.1(1)0

4.4 Format of information released

PaperElectronicOther
E-recordData setVideoAudio
167280000

4.5 Complexity

4.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed for paper and e-record formats

Number of Pages ProcessedNumber of Pages DisclosedNumber of Requests
54,57141,3451,025

4.5.2 Relevant pages processed per request disposition for paper and e-record formats by size of requests

DispositionLess Than 100
Pages Processed
100-500
Pages Processed
501-1000
Pages Processed
1001-5000
Pages Processed
More Than 5000
Pages Processed
Number of RequestsPages ProcessedNumber of RequestsPages ProcessedNumber of RequestsPages ProcessedNumber of RequestsPages ProcessedNumber of RequestsPages Processed
All disclosed1661,72371,4180011,18900
Disclosed in part4879,0846915,83775,187717,99200
All exempted192605904000000
All excluded225803397000000
Request abandoned231000000000
Neither confirmed nor denied1000000000
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner0000000000
Total92611,6478418,55675,187819,18100

4.5.3 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for audio formats

Number of Minutes ProcessedNumber of Minutes DisclosedNumber of Requests
000

4.5.4 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for audio formats by size of requests

DispositionLess Than 60 Minutes Processed60 - 120 Minutes ProcessedMore than 120 Minutes Processed
Number of RequestsMinutes
Processed
Number of RequestsMinutes
Processed
Number of RequestsMinutes
Processed
All disclosed000000
Disclosed in part000000
All exempted000000
All excluded000000
Request abandoned000000
Neither confirmed nor denied000000
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner000000
Total000000

4.5.5 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for video formats

Number of Minutes ProcessedNumber of Minutes DisclosedNumber of Requests
000

4.5.6 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for video formats by size of requests

DispositionLess Than 60 Minutes Processed60 - 120 Minutes ProcessedMore than 120 Minutes Processed
Number of RequestsMinutes
Processed
Number of RequestsMinutes
Processed
Number of RequestsMinutes
Processed
All disclosed000000
Disclosed in part000000
All exempted000000
All excluded000000
Request abandoned000000
Neither confirmed nor denied000000
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner000000
Total000000

4.5.7 Other complexities

DispositionConsultation RequiredLegal Advice SoughtOtherTotal
All disclosed160016
Disclosed in part16908177
All exempted330336
All excluded0000
Request abandoned380038
Neither confirmed nor denied0000
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner0000
Total256011267

4.6 Closed requests

4.6.1 Requests closed within legislated timelines

4.7 Deemed refusals

4.7.1 Reasons for not meeting legislated timelines

Number of requests closed past the legislated timelinesPrincipal Reason
Interference with operations/ WorkloadExternal ConsultationInternal ConsultationOther
60326064101178

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

Number of days past legislated timelinesNumber of requests past legislated timeline where no extension was takenNumber of requests past legislated timeline where an extension was takenTotal
1 to 15 days203656
16 to 30 days192746
31 to 60 days263157
61 to 120 days3677113
121 to 180 days115465
181 to 365 days37110147
More than 365 days5663119
Total205398603

4.8 Requests for translation

Translation RequestsAcceptedRefusedTotal
English to French000
French to English000
Total000

Section 5: Extensions

5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Disposition of Requests Where an Extension Was Taken9(1)(a)
Interference With Operations/ Workload
9(1)(b)
Consultation
9(1)(c)
Third-Party Notice
Section 69Other
All disclosed601741
Disclosed in part100113756
All exempted50130
All excluded21200
Request abandoned161813
No records exist240120
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner0000
Total2071457510

5.2 Length of extensions

Length of Extensions9(1)(a)
Interference With Operations/ Workload
9(1)(b)
Consultation
9(1)(c)
Third-Party Notice
Section 69Other
30 days or less711634
31 to 60 days21102322
61 to 120 days9132534
121 to 180 days160140
181 to 365 days60110
365 days or more2020
Total2071457510

Section 6: Fees

Fee TypeFee CollectedFee WaivedFee Refunded
Number of
Requests
AmountNumber of
Requests
AmountNumber of
Requests
Amount
Application1,266$6,330638$3,1900$0
Other fees0$00$00$0
Total1,266$6,330638$3,1900$0

Section 7: Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

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

ConsultationsOther Government of Canada InstitutionsNumber of Pages to ReviewOther OrganizationsNumber of Pages to Review
Received during the reporting period4219,74314178
Outstanding from the previous reporting period38231,66810248
Total80341,41124426
Closed during the reporting period41228,21218414
Carried over within negotiated timelines721,49200
Carried over beyond negotiated timelines31911,707612

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

RecommendationNumber of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
1 to 15 Days16 to 30 Days31 to 60 Days61 to 120 Days121 to 180 Days181 to 365 DaysMore Than 365 DaysTotal
Disclose entirely1821263019136133
Disclose in part691533303058181
Exempt entirely10110104
Exclude entirely10002025
Consult other institution00100001
Other20778653588
Total463750725749101412

7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations outside the Government of Canada

RecommendationNumber of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
1 to 15 Days16 to 30 Days31 to 60 Days61 to 120 Days121 to 180 Days181 to 365 DaysMore Than 365 DaysTotal
Disclose entirely21130007
Disclose in part10130117
Exempt entirely00000000
Exclude entirely00000000
Consult other institution10000001
Other00200013
Total414601218

Section 8: Completion Time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences

8.1 Requests with Legal Services

Number of DaysFewer Than 100 Pages Processed100-500 Pages
Processed
501-1000
Pages Processed
1001-5000
Pages Processed
More Than 5000
Pages Processed
Number of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages Disclosed
1 to 15131900000000
16 to 303616400000000
31 to 601921000000000
61 to 1205600000000
121 to 1801800000000
181 to 3652300000000
More than 3650000000000
Total7641000000000

8.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Number of DaysFewer Than 100 Pages Processed100-500 Pages
Processed
501-1000
Pages Processed
1001-5000
Pages Processed
More Than 5000
Pages Processed
Number of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages DisclosedNumber of
Requests
Pages Disclosed
1 to 150000000000
16 to 300000000000
31 to 600000000000
61 to 1200000000000
121 to 1800000000000
181 to 3650000000000
More than 3650000000000
Total0000000000

Section 9: Investigations and Reports of finding

9.1 Investigations

Section 32 Notice of intention to investigateSubsection 30(5) Ceased to investigateSection 35 Formal Representations
251571

9.2 Investigations and Reports of finding

Section 37(1) Initial ReportsSection 37(2) Final Reports
ReceivedContaining recommendations issued by the Information CommissionerContaining orders issued by the Information CommissionerReceivedContaining recommendations issued by the Information CommissionerContaining orders issued by the Information Commissioner
1028624

Section 10: Court Action

10.1 Court actions on complaints

Section 41
Complainant (1)Institution (2)Third Party (3)Privacy Commissioner (4)Total
10001

10.2 Court actions on third party notifications under paragraph 28(1)(b)

Section 44 - under paragraph 28(1)(b)
0

Section 11: Resources Related to the Access to Information Act

11.1 Allocated Costs

ExpendituresAmount
Salaries$3,888,694
Overtime$30,464
Goods and Services$1,652,535
Professional services contracts$1,463,880
Other$188,655
Total$5,571,693

11.2 Human Resources

ResourcesPerson Years Dedicated to Access to Information Activities
Full-time employees40.269
Part-time and casual employees1.597
Regional staff0.000
Consultants and agency personnel5.278
Students0.000
Total47.144

Annex C: ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ 2023-2024 Supplemental Statistical Report

Supplemental Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act

Name of institution: ¶¶ÒùÊÓƵ

Reporting period: 2023-04-01 to 2024-03-31

Section 1: Open Requests and Complaints Under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Enter the number of open requests that are outstanding from previous reporting periods.

Fiscal Year Open Requests Were ReceivedOpen Requests that are Within Legislated Timelines as of March 31, 2024Open Requests that are Beyond Legislated Timelines as of March 31, 2024Total
Received in 2023-245286181,146
Received in 2022-23141345486
Received in 2021-2248154202
Received in 2020-2106060
Received in 2019-2014445
Received in 2018-192810
Received in 2017-18044
Received in 2016-17101
Received in 2015-16000
Received in 2014-15 or earlier000
Total7211,2331,954

1.2 Enter the number of open complaints with the Information Commissioner of Canada that are outstanding from previous reporting periods.

Fiscal Year Open Complaints Were Received by InstitutionNumber of Open Complaints
Received in 2023-24227
Received in 2022-2311
Received in 2021-221
Received in 2020-211
Received in 2019-201
Received in 2018-190
Received in 2017-180
Received in 2016-170
Received in 2015-160
Received in 2014-15 or earlier0
Total241

Section 2: Open Requests and Complaints Under the Privacy Act

2.1 Enter the number of open requests that are outstanding from previous reporting periods.

Fiscal Year Open Requests Were ReceivedOpen Requests that are Within Legislated Timelines as of March 31, 2024Open Requests that are Beyond Legislated Timelines as of March 31, 2024Total
Received in 2023-24272754
Received in 2022-23066
Received in 2021-22055
Received in 2020-21055
Received in 2019-20044
Received in 2018-19044
Received in 2017-18000
Received in 2016-17000
Received in 2015-16000
Received in 2014-15 or earlier000
Total275178

2.2 Enter the number of open complaints with the Privacy Commissioner of Canada that are outstanding from previous reporting periods.

Fiscal Year Open Complaints Were Received by InstitutionNumber of Open Complaints
Received in 2023-2410
Received in 2022-234
Received in 2021-226
Received in 2020-211
Received in 2019-202
Received in 2018-193
Received in 2017-182
Received in 2016-170
Received in 2015-160
Received in 2014-15 or earlier0
Total28

Section 3: Social Insurance Number

Has your institution begun a new collection or a new consistent use of the SIN in 2023-24? No

Section 4: Universal Access under the Privacy Act

How many requests were received from foreign nationals outside of Canada in 2023-24? 234

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