| Name: | Mr. Paul Zed |
| Political Party: | Liberal Party of Canada |
| Constituency: | Saint John |
| Province: | New Brunswick |
| Telephone: | (613) 947-2700 |
| Fax: | (613) 947-4574 |
| Email: | Zed.P@parl.gc.ca or zedp@parl.gc.ca |
| Address: | House of Commons, Ottawa K1A OA6 |
| Constituency Address: | 90 King Street Saint John, New Brunswick E2L 1G4 Tel: 506-657-2500 Fax: 506-657-2504 |
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11/03/2004 - email from MP Paul Zed to Michelle Knoll. From: Zed, Paul - M.P. Dear Ms. Knoll: I am writing in reply to your e-mail regarding the release of census information. I appreciate you taking the time to contact me. Yesterday in the Senate; the Government of Canada introduced S-18, An Act to amend the Statistics Act. This bill will enable access to both past and future census records. This bill has a provision that for censuses taken between 1911 and 2001, access will be permitted 92 years after the census has taken place, and starting with the 2006 Census, Canadians will be able to decide if they will allow their personal census information to be released publicly after 92 years. Individual census records would be released only when consent is given. Statistics Canada, in conjunction with Library and Archives Canada, will, as part of the 2006 Census public communications campaign, will encourage Canadians to allow future access to their census records to preserve Canada’s history for prospective generations. This bill provides for a parliamentary review to occur after two censuses, to assess the rate of opting in and to examine how improved public communications and procedures might improve this rate. I believe that this bill moves in the right direction, and I am pleased that it provides access to records that were previously inaccessible. I plan to support this bill when it comes up for a vote in the House of Commons, and I support the preservation of historical documents. Regards, Paul Zed 11/03/2004 - email from MP Paul Zed to Gordon A. Watts. From: Zed, Paul - M.P. Dear Mr. Watts: As you may know, yesterday in the Senate; the Government of Canada introduced S-18, An Act to amend the Statistics Act. This bill will enable access to both past and future census records. This bill has a provision that for censuses taken between 1911 and 2001, access will be permitted 92 years after the census has taken place, and starting with the 2006 Census, Canadians will be able to decide if they will allow their personal census information to be released publicly after 92 years. Individual census records would be released only when consent is given. Statistics Canada, in conjunction with Library and Archives Canada, as part of the 2006 Census public communications campaign, will encourage Canadians to allow future access to their census records to preserve Canada’s history for prospective generations. This bill provides for a parliamentary review to occur after two censuses, to assess the rate of opting in and to examine how improved public communications and procedures might improve this rate. I believe that this bill moves in the right direction, and I am pleased that it provides access to records that were previously inaccessible. I plan to support this bill when it comes up for a vote in the House of Commons, and I support the preservation of historical documents. Regards, Paul Zed 11/03/2004 - email from MP Paul Zed to Adele Turner. From: Zed, Paul - M.P. [mailto:ZedP@parl.gc.ca] Dear Ms. Turner: As you know, yesterday in the Senate; the Government of Canada introduced S-18, An Act to amend the Statistics Act. This bill will enable access to both past and future census records. This bill has a provision that for censuses taken between 1911 and 2001, access will be permitted 92 years after the census has taken place, and starting with the 2006 Census, Canadians will be able to decide if they will allow their personal census information to be released publicly after 92 years. Individual census records would be released only when consent is given. Statistics Canada, in conjunction with Library and Archives Canada, will, as part of the 2006 Census public communications campaign, will encourage Canadians to allow future access to their census records to preserve Canada’s history for prospective generations. This bill provides for a parliamentary review to occur after two censuses, to assess the rate of opting in and to examine how improved public communications and procedures might improve this rate. I believe that this bill moves in the right direction, and I am pleased that it provides access to records that were previously inaccessible. I plan to support this bill when it comes up for a vote in the House of Commons, and I support the preservation of historical documents. Regards, Paul Zed 10/29/2004 - email to MP Paul Zed from Gordon A. Watts. From: Gordon A. Watts Dear Mr. Zed Your constituents of Saint John, New Brunswick elected you to the Parliament of Canada, presumably because they felt you were an intelligent, thinking individual capable of forming an opinion for yourself on any given subject. In voting for you they likely felt that your opinions would frequently parallel their own. In writing to you to ask a question, or to seek your support for something they feel strongly about, your constituents and others wish to know your position or opinion on the subject matter. They do not seek the position of a political party, or of a third party to whom you may have forwarded their query. In a letter you sent to Muriel M. Davidson, dated 18 October 2004, you failed to respond to the question she asked regarding your position on the question of support for public access to Post 1901 Census records. You simply forwarded her letter to the Hon. Liza Frulla, Minister for Canadian Heritage, requesting her to respond directly to Mrs. Davidson. Existing legislation, in the form of 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, 92 years following collection. Chief Statistician Ivan P. Fellegi, during sworn testimony, has finally admitted that there is no restrictive legislation that would prevent the return of control of Historic Census records to the National Archivist for subsequent public release. He admits that his refusal to effect that return is simply a matter of policy -- a policy which he devised and over which he has always had control. It would be greatly appreciated if you would consent to give a direct answer to a direct question regarding your personal position or opinion on the issue of public access to Historic Census records. Do you support, or oppose, public access to Historic Census records, 92 years after collection in accordance with existing legislation as mentioned above? Your response, or lack thereof, to this message will be added to your Correspondence Log on the MPs Scoreboard of the Post 1901 Census Project website at the URL following my signature. It will be available there for your constituents, seeking your position on this issue, to view. Thank you in advance for your speedy, hopefully personal and positive response to my message. Respectfully, Gordon A. Watts gordon_watts@telus.net Co-chair Canada Census Committee 10/18/2004 - letter from MP Paul Zed to Muriel M. Davidson. October 18, 2004 Dear Mrs. Davidson:- Thank you for your letter in which you congratulate me on my election to the House of Commons and outline your concerns regarding the release of census information. I appreciate you taking the time to write. I have forwarded a copy of your letter to the Honourable Liza Frulla, Minister of Canadian Heritage for her reply. Thank you again for writing. Kind regards,
Paul Zed - MP ---------------------------- October 20, 2004 Honourable Liza Frulla, P.C., M.P. Dear Minister Frulla: I have forwarded to you a copy of a letter from Ms. Muriel Davidson, Co-Chair of the Canada Census Committee. In this letter, Ms. Davidson voices her concern regarding the release of census information. I would be thankful if you would reply directly to Ms. Davidson. Kind regards, C.C.: Muriel Davidson 08/29/2004 - letter sent to MP Paul Zed from Gordon A. Watts 29 August 2004 Mr. Paul Zed Dear Mr. Zed 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 06/28/2004 - Paul Zed was elected to the House of Commons on 28 June 2004 |
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