| Name: | The Hon. Lawrence MacAulay |
| Political Party: | Liberal Party of Canada |
| Constituency: | Cardigan |
| Province: | Prince Edward Island |
| Telephone: | (613) 995-9325 |
| Fax: | (613) 995-2754 |
| Email: | MacAulay.L@parl.gc.ca |
| Address: | House of Commons, Ottawa K1A OA6 |
| Constituency Address: | 551 Main Street PO Box 1150 Montague, Prince Edward Island C0A 1R0 |
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09/27/2004 - email to MP Lawrence MacAulay From: "Muriel M. Davidson" To Lawrence MacAulay, MP -- Cardigan riding There was a reply from an assistant back in 2002 -- but all correspondence seems to have stopped after that. We would like to see the GREEN replaced with GOLD, and reading the memo sent by an assistant, you believe the file to be "complex". However, that is not the case! The so-called complexity is due to the fact the Chief Statistician prefers NOT to transfer the census records to Library and Archives Canada where Ian Wilson has been named as the Chief Archivist and Librarian. Your scoreboard and message board listing is at http://www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/Score5.htm#PEI There are many residents of Prince Edward Island and your own riding of Cardigan who would be very grateful to you for any assistance you might be able to give re census release. There is NO need to transfer this letter to anyone -- I feel Members of Parliament should be able to answer on thier own. Hoping for a positive reply from you -- you are the only one keeping Prince Edward Island from having the GOLDEN look that Nova Scotia does! Muriel M. Davidson muriel_davidson@sympatico.ca 08/29/2004 - letter sent to MP Lawrence MacAulay from Gordon A. Watts 29 August 2004 Mr. Lawrence MacAulay Dear Mr. Mac Aulay Congratulations on your recent election as a Member of Parliament. To have the trust and respect of those who voted for you is a great honour. Members who have been re-elected will be aware of an issue affecting a great many Canadians that seek their personal ancestry through research of Historic Census records. Newly elected Members may not yet be aware of this issue. It has been estimated that in excess of 7.5 million Canadians have an interest in genealogy and family history. These individuals seek to regain the same public access, with no added conditions or restrictions, to 92-year-old records of Census after 1906 that is currently available for 240 years of Census records up to that time. Access to Census records after 1906 is prevented at this time because of the (believed illegal) policy of a federal civil servant - Dr. Ivan P. Fellegi - Chief Statistician of Canada. The Library and Archives of Canada Act (and it's predecessor) has designated to the Librarian and Archivist the authority to determine what records of government are of archival or historical value and that shall be deposited in the National Library and Archives. Librarian and Archivist Ian E. Wilson determined that schedules of Census have archival and historical value. He declared them to be a National Treasure. He requested the Chief Statistician to return care and control of the records in question to his authority. Dr. Fellegi denied that request. The Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Privacy Regulations, make specific provision for personal information collected through Census or Survey to be made available to any person or body for purposes of research, 92 years following collection. The legislation assumes these records to be under the care and control of the National Archivist. By refusing to return care and control of the records in question to the Librarian and Archivist for subsequent public access the Chief Statistician has acted in deliberate contravention of the Library and Archives of Canada Act, the Access to Information Act, and the Privacy Act. He has usurped the authority of the Librarian and Archivist to determine what governmental records are of archival or historical value and that shall be deposited in the Library and Archives of Canada. In dictating policy instead of following policy determined through legislation passed by Parliament he has usurped the authority of that body. Do you believe that any Federal bureaucrat, regardless of how highly placed or regarded, is above the Laws of Canada? Do you believe that a civil servant has the power to dictate policy that contravenes legislation passed by the Parliament of Canada? The Access to Information and Privacy Acts are complementary Acts born of the same Bill debated and passed by Parliament. Do you believe the parliamentarians who passed this legislation would knowingly include clauses in one Act, the effect of which would be to totally nullify clauses in the other? If your answer to any of these questions is 'NO' we ask that you support our efforts to regain the same public access - with no added restrictions or conditions - to Historic Census records after 1906 that is currently available for 240 years of Census records up to that time. We seek nothing new. We seek only that which current legislation states we are entitled to - access that we have had in the past but is currently (believed illegally) withheld from us by the Chief Statistician of Canada. We ask that you call upon the Government of Canada to immediately direct the Chief Statistician of Canada to obey the Laws of Canada. We ask that he be directed to return care and control of schedules of Historic Census to the Librarian and Archivist of Canada for subsequent public access in accordance with the Access to Information and Privacy Acts. We ask further that you ensure continued public access to Historic Census records by seeking a government Bill that would add to the Statistics Act a single clause, similar to the following: "Original schedules of Census or authentic copies thereof shall, not later than thirty (30) years following collection, be transferred to the care and control of the National Archivist for subsequent public access in accordance with provisions of the Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Regulations attached thereto." In reading my letter you may not feel any obligation to respond to someone living outside your electoral riding. The votes you cast in Parliament, however, affect all people living in Canada and in that respect your constituency is all of Canada. Considering this, even though I do not reside in your riding I would greatly appreciate your personal response to my letter. Your response, stating your support (or otherwise) of the access we seek, will be posted to your Correspondence Log on the Post 1901 Census Project website. It will be available for viewing by your constituents on the MPs Scoreboard at www.globalgenealogy.com/Census Thank you for taking the time to read my letter, and for your consideration of this very important issue. Respectfully Gordon A. Watts 10/07/2002 - email to MP Lawrence MacAulay from Gordon A. Watts.
To: MP MacAulay, Lawrence Sent: Monday, October 07, 2002 11:44 AM Subject: Post 1901 Census legislation Dear Mr. MacAulay At long last there has been a public acknowledgement by the Government of Canada that they have an interest in the concerns of Canadians, and others, that seek continuing access to Post-1901 Census records. That acknowledgement took the form of inclusion of a statement in an address of the Hon. Don Boudria, Minister of State and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. The address was made to the Newsmakers Breakfast at the National Press Club, 3 October 2002. It was titled "The Government's Fall Legislative Program". On page four of Mr. Boudria's notes for that address, he states: "Other legislation will also be introduced respecting: The release of 92-year old census records for historical research purposes - which responds to recommendations and work done by parliamentarians in the House and Senate such as MP Calder and Senator Milne;" This acknowledgement of our concerns, on behalf of the government, is welcome news. It does not yet mean, however, that continued public access of Historic Census records has been approved and those records are now available to access for purposes of research. The proposed legislation has not yet been brought down, and it remains to be seen if, when it is brought down, it meets the needs and expectations of those seeking access. Senator Lorna Milne continues to work with the Hon. Allan Rock, Minister of Industry, to ensure that the end result does meet those needs and expectations. I remind you that what we seek is exactly the same unrestricted access to records after 1901 that is currently available for those records up to and including 1901. I currently show you on the MPs Scoreboard of the Post 1901 Census Project website (at the URL following my signature) as "sitting on the fence". You have been given this position by virtue of the fact that you have yet to give a definitive response stating your support, or otherwise, for public access to Historic Census records, 92 years after collection. (Or, at least, that I have seen no such response.) In view of the fact that the Government has now stated it's intention to introduce legislation that will hopefully address our concerns, will you now give a definitive response stating your supportive position for such legislation? I am not one of your constituents, but in writing to you I believe that I speak on behalf of a great many others who are your constituents. As such, I hope that you will afford me the courtesy of a response to this message. In responding to my message with a supportive answer to my question, so that it might be posted to your correspondence log, you would likely save yourself a great many similar requests by others. Thank you for taking the time to read my message, and for responding thereto. Have a great day! Sincerely Gordon A. Watts gordon_watts@telus.net Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee 1455 Delia Drive Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 2V9 05/30/2002 - email from MP Lawrence MacAuley to Frank McKerry.
To: Frank McKerry Sent: Thursday, May 30, 2002 11:30 AM Subject: Census Dear Mr. McKerry: On behalf of the Solicitor General of Canada, the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, I would like to thank you for your correspondence of April 8, 2002, regarding the release of Post-1901 Census reports to the public after 92 years. I am sorry for the delay in replying to your letter. As you already know, this has been a long-standing issue and no decision or legislation has been passed yet to allow the release of those records. Therefore, due to the complexity of this this file, I have taken the liberty of forwarding a copy of your correspondence to the Honourable Allan Rock, who oversees Statistics Canada as Minister of Industry Canada, for his consideration. I trust this will be of assistance. Sincerely, Nathalie Durocher Assistant Office of the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay 09/30/99- letter from Lawrence MacAulay, M.P. to Muriel M. Davidson:
Dear Ms. Davidson: Thank you for your correspondence of September 1, 1999, in which you voice your support for releasing post-1901 Census Reports to the public after 92 years. The Government of Canada has received many letters and phone calls from concerned Canadians like you on this very important issue. However, the issue is more complex than many Canadians realize and I would like to take this opportunity to explain both side of the issue and the options that are currently being considered. The release of individual census records is explicitly prohibited by law for all censuses following 1901. The records of censuses taken in 1901 and in prior years have been transferred to the National Achives for public access. This was possible because the legislation that was used to collect these census records did not contain any provisions that prohibited their transfer. The information contained in these records is protected only by the Privacy Act, which stipulates that National Archives can make these records available to the public, as you have noted in your letter, after 92 years have passed. Starting in 1906, however, and in subsequent censuses, the legislation that gave the authority to collect census information contained statutory confidentiality provisions. As a result, Statistics Canada cannot transfer the census records taken under the authority of the 1906 and subsequent Statistics Acts to the National Archives. Statistics Canada continues to hold all individual returns of census questionnaires collected between 1906 and 1986. These records have been transformed from questionnaires to Microfilm, and are available for access by individuals who neet to confirm birth dates for pension purposes, passports, etc... The paper questionnaires have been destroyed in accordance with approvals given by the National Archives of Canada. As a result, Statistics Canada, does not have the option, as has been suggested by some genealogists and researcherd, of being able to filter out the more sensitive information from early census records, since microfilm technology, unlike newer technology such as optical imaging, does not lend itself to severence. Like any law, the Statistics Act can be amended to permit the release of individual records after 92 years. But, this is where an important principle of privacy protection comes into play: is it right to alter retroactively the conditions under which information was provided by Canadians? should Parliament delcare, in effect, as invalid, the explicit guarantee of indefinite confidentiality that was promised to Canadians when they filled out their census forms? While there is undeniably great value attached to historical census records, there is also great value attached to the aggregate information that can be produced from current and future censuses. In fact, various pieces of legislation depend on accurate census information to meet specific needs, for example transfer payments to provinces. Canadian citizens have always co-operated by providing personal informaton to Statistics Canada. The most important factor contributing to this co-operation is the unconditional guarantee given to respondents that the information they supply will be protected. Any changes made to the commitments to past respondents could have a serious impact on the level of co-operation given to future censuses. That being said, the Government of Canada is actively involved in trying to find a solution to this impasse. it is my understanding that my colleague, the Honourable John Manley, Minsiter of Industry, is currently considering two options in his role as the Minister responsible. The first, to allow records, starting with the 2001 Census and carrying on from there, to be made public through the National Archives after 92 years. The second option is retroactively change the confidentiality provisions to allow the 1911 census and all censuses taken thereafter to be evetually placed in the public domain. Thank you for your letter and for making your feelings on this importanat issue known to me. I will make every effort to keep you informed of any decisions that are made, as they occur. Sincerely, [Signature] Lawrence MacAulay, P.C., M.P. 04/30/99- e-mail from The Global Gazette to MP
A web site has been posted at http://globalgenealogy.com/census to record MP's responses, so that those who are interested, will know the position that their elected representative has (or has not expressed) on the issue. Also included on the web site, is a correspondence log for each Member of Parliament, which will contain responses to this e-mail plus any other correspondence from the MP. The Question: "Would you, as an elected Member of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Canada, vote FOR or AGAINST a Bill supporting release to the Public, of Post 1901 Census Records, 92 years after they were recorded. ( 1911 census information available in 2003, 1921 in 2013 etc)" If you would like to expand on your position, your entire response will be posted to your individual correspondence log. The Post 1901 Census web site is sponsored by Global Genealogy & History Bookstore. A vast number of e-mails and calls from subscribers and web site visitors, clearly demonstrates that this issue is extremely important to them. Many readers have expressed that their current MP's position on this issue will weigh heavily in their decision process during the next election. |
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