The Information and Privacy Commissioner, Phil Wall, has released his Report 2005-002 under authority of the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act. A summary of the report is included below.

To view the report in its entirety, please go to //www.gov.nl.ca/oipc

Report 2005-002
Report Date: June 3, 2005
Public Body: Executive Council

Summary: The Applicant applied under the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (ATIPPA) for access to records relating to polls conducted on the Atlantic Accord and/or offshore oil revenues within a specified time frame. Executive Council withheld these records in their entirety, invoking sections 23(1) and 24(1) of the ATIPPA. Executive Council claimed that release of this information would harm this Province�s relations with the Government of Canada and would harm the financial and economic interests of the Province. The Commissioner found that neither of these exceptions applied to the majority of information in the responsive records, and he recommended that the records be disclosed to the Applicant, with the exception of a single page.

The Commissioner is pleased to report that Executive Council contacted this Office shortly after receiving our Report and indicated that they agreed with our recommendations and that the records at issue had already been forwarded to the Applicant. I am encouraged by their quick response and look forward to continued cooperation in the future.

Media contact: Sandy Hounsell, Executive Director (709) 729-6309

2005 06 06                      10:30 a.m.