| Name: | Gerald J. Comeau |
| Political Party: | Conservative |
| Province: | Nova Scotia |
| Senatorial Division: | Nova Scotia |
| Telephone: | (613) 943-1448 |
| Fax: | (613) |
| Email: | N/A |
| Website: |
| Address: | Senate of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A OA4 |
04/01/2003 - automatic response from Senator Gerald Comeau to Muriel M. Davidson.
To: "Muriel M. Davidson" Sent: Tuesday, April 01, 2003 7:42 AM Subject: Read: Let's make Nova Scotia scoreboards 100% POSITIVE Your message To: Comeau, Gérald: SEN Subject: Let's make Nova Scotia scoreboards 100% POSITIVE Sent: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 22:47:23 -0500 was read on Tue, 1 Apr 2003 07:42:04 -0500 03/27/2002 - letter from Senator Gerald Comeau to Muriel M. Davidson.
Ms. Muriel M. Davidson Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee Dear Ms. Davidson: Thank you for your letter of March 17, 2002 regarding Bill S-12 to authorize release of Census records to the public. I share the fascination of those who wish to research their family history. In fact, I have traced my ancestry to the 16th century. I also know that census records would be a precious source for information. My understanding, however is that the legislation promised that the information would not be made public. Regarding this Bill, why would legislation be necessary to permit access if there is no legal barrier to access. I also refer you to Senator Murray's speech in the Senate dated March 27, 2001. Senator Murray quotes from the regulations under the 1905 and 1906 Census and Statistics Act which were promulgated in 1906 and again in 1911, officials were required to: ……..keep inviolate the secrecy of the information gathered by enumerators and entered in the schedules and forms. The relevant excerpts from the 1918 Act Statistics Act. Section 15(1) reads as follows: "No individual return, and no part of an individual return, made, and no answer to any question put, for the purposes of this Act, shall, without the previous consent of the person or of the owner for the time being of the undertaking in relation to which the return or answer was made or given, be published, nor, except for the purposes of a prosecution under this Act, shall any person not engaged in connection with the Census be permitted to see any such individual return or any part of any individual return. No report, summary of statistics or other publication under this Act shall contain any of the particulars comprised in any individual return so arranged as to enable any person to identify any particulars so published as being particulars relating to any individual person or business." I am not a lawyer but the wording seems to me to be quite straightforward that the data would remain confidential and was to be used only by authorized government officials for planning and statistical purposes. If such is the case, subsequent parliamentarians have no business breaking the promises of their predecessors. The passing of time and the fact that respondents are deceased does not lessen the solemnity of the promise. Legislative authority which guarantees confidentiality is an invaluable incentive provided to government planners to conduct their statistical research. If you have seen the most recent Statistics Canada long form, you might understand why many Canadians today might be justifiably reluctant to provide confidential and personal information if they were to learn that future parliamentarians can break the promise of confidentiality. Current Parliamentarians might also be reluctant to support current census statutes which lawfully oblige detailed personal information from Canadians if promises of confidentiality can no longer be assured. This is not a matter of supporting Senatorial colleagues. The Senators you mention who support S-12 may well interpret the promises of the past differently. In my view however, S-12 reverses an undertaking of privacy. Senator Murray has suggested ways that could help Canadians access information from census records. Similar to the legislation in Australia, individual respondents could have the right to consent or not to consent to disclosure. Secondly, a process which would permit access to individuals who wish to do research on their own families. Sincerely, GC [Gerald Comeau] 10/16/2001 - email from Senator Gerald Comeau to Marg. MacDonald.
Dear Mrs. MacDonald: Thank you for your letter of September 28th, 2001 requesting my support for legislation to authorize the release of old Census records to the public. I share the keen interest of those who wish to research their family history and I know that census records would be a precious source for such information. My understanding however is that government at that time promised that the information would not be made public. Unless I am mistaken, the data would remain confidential and was to be used only by authorized government officials for planning and statistical purposes. If such is the case, subsequent parliamentarians have no business breaking the promises of their predecessors. The passing of time and the fact that respondents are deceased does not lessen the solemnity of the promise. Legislative authority to guarantee confidentiality is an invaluable statistical tool available to government planners in their research. I fear that many Canadians today might be justifiably reluctant to provide confidential and personl information if they were to learn that future parliamentarians can break the promise by legistlation. Current parliamentarians might also be reluctant to support current census statutes which lawfully request detailed personal information from Canadians if promises of confidentiality can no longer be assured. I understand the longing to know more about one's ancestors but parliamentarians cannot justify legislation that breaks the promise of privacy for Canadians. Sincerely Gerald Comeau 10/04/2001 - email to Senator Gerald J. Comeau from Sharon Walker.
I am interested in researching my family's history and wish to gain access to the 1911 and subsequent census records. It has been estimated that there are some 7.5 million plus Canadians involved in Genealogical research. These citizens, in their quest for their past, for their Canadian heritage, depend heavily upon the information provided in Census reports. Under current legislation, post 1901 Census reports will not be released to the Public after 92 years, as have been Census reports up to and including 1901. I am aware that Statistics Canada will not transfer these records to the National Archives because they claim it would violate Section 17 of the Statistics Act. Strong representations have been made to Mr. Tobin's office as minister in charge of Statistics Canada to change the legislation that controls release of the census. I have recently learned that there are two alternatives to correct this undesirable situation. The first alternative is to introduce retroactive legislation to permit the release of all census records once they are 92 years old, as now provided for in the privacy regulations. The second alternative is to change the legislation to permit the release of census records STARTING WITH THE 2001 census. The second alternative is completely unacceptable as it would prevent researchers from viewing any census records falling between the years 1911 and 2001. The 92-year-rule gives more than adequate privacy protection to citizens enumerated in the census. In the past two years, many of those 7.5 million plus voters, including myself, have sent numerous letters and email to their local Members of Parliament, Government Ministers, and Senators expressing their dismay with, and opposition to, this legislation. We have requested the legislation be amended to allow release to the Public of Census records after 92 years, starting with the 1911 Census. I write to ask the following question: would you vote FOR or AGAINST a Bill supporting release to the Public of Post 1901 Census Records after 92 years, starting with the 1906 Census? I respectfully request and strongly urge you to support the retroactive legislation to permit the release of the 1911 and subsequent census records. I await your answer to this question at your earliest convenience. Sharon Walker 09/29/2001 - letter to Senator Gerald J. Comeau from Marg MacDonald.
I am aware that you are 'UNDECIDED' regarding the release of the 1906 and subsequent Census records to the public. As a Canadian citizen, I do support the recommendations of the Expert Panel on Access to Historical Census Records, and I encourage you to take a strong stand on BILL S-12, which will allow the publishing of the post 1901 Census records and any future census records as well. I have been researching my families' roots for many years. Without records such as the Census' being available for all to review, it make the search very difficult, if not impossible. These particular census are especially vital to my research and I'm sure to many others, since huge number of our forefathers immigrated during this period. The Expert Panel acknowledges that these records are important and says they should continue to be made available. I strongly urge you to support Bill S-12, making the information available to future generations of Canadians. If you have bery good reasons why you cannot support this Bill, I would appreciate knowing what they are. Thank you. Respectfully, Marge MacDonald Maple Ridge, BC 07/01/2001 - letter sent to all Senators by Gordon A. Watts.
Greetings. You may be aware that in the past several years a great many Canadians have been seeking to regain public access to Historic Census Records, 92 years after collection, as allowed by Regulations attached to the Privacy Act. Public access to Census Records after 1901 is currently prevented because of misinterpreted legislation and faulty legal opinions from Justice Canada that cause Statistics Canada to withhold control of these records from the National Archivist. In November of 1999, then Industry Minister John Manley commissioned a panel of experts to study and make recommendations relating to public access to Historic Census Records. Their Report was submitted at the end of June 2000. It was finally made public, because of an Access to Information Request, on 15 December 2000. Current Industry Minister Brian Tobin, on releasing the Report of the Expert Panel on Access to Historic Census, rejected the recommendations contained therein, stating that “further broad based consultation with all Canadians” was required. It is the considered opinion of this writer that Mr. Tobin has likely not even read the Report of the Expert Panel, and is taking his direction from Chief Statistician Dr. Ivan Fellegi, who opposes public access to these records. I urge each of you to read for yourself the findings of the Expert Panel on Access to Historic Census Records. It is available in hard copy, or accessible on the Statistics Canada website at: http://www.statcan.ca/english/census96/finalrep.htm en français http://www.statcan.ca/francais/census96/finalrep_f.htm Briefly, the Expert Panel found that a guarantee of perpetual confidentiality was not intended to apply to the census. They felt that it had always been intended that census records would eventually become public and did not view any legislation deemed necessary to do so as breaking of a promise to respondents. The Report recommended allowing public access to all Census records, past, present and future, 92 years following collection. They advised caution only regarding any legislative steps that might be thought necessary to effect release of Census between 1921 and 2001. They suggested that any legislative change felt necessary be done in the National Archives Act rather than in the Statistics Act. This message is being sent to all Members of the Senate of Canada to ask for individual responses to a specific question regarding how you would vote on a Bill supporting public access to Historic Census Records. An example of such would be Bill S-12, presented to the Senate by the Honourable Lorna Milne. Bill S-12 has received second reading and has been referred to Committee. Bill C-312, identical to S-12, has been presented to the House of Commons by MP Murray Calder. The Question: “Would you, as a Member of the Senate 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.)” A website dealing with Post 1901 Census has been posted at http://globalgenealogy.com/Census Among other things, it contains an explanation of the problem, petitions to download, links to various submissions to the Expert Panel, Bills and Motions relating to Historic Census, extracts from Hansard for the House of Commons and the Senate, and to columns written by myself that have been published in the Global Gazette -- an e-magazine published by Global Genealogy. The website also contains ‘Scoreboards’ showing the position of MPs and Senators relating to the above question. Your response (or lack thereof) to the question above will be recorded on the Senator’s Scoreboard located on this website. Should you wish to comment, or elaborate on your position, a correspondence log for each Senator is accessible from the Scoreboard. Correspondence to or from you that has been forwarded to me, will be recorded in this log. The Post 1901 Census web site is sponsored by The Global Gazette, an online magazine serving the genealogical and heritage community. A vast number of e-mails and calls from subscribers and web site visitors, clearly demonstrates that this issue is extremely important to them. I look forward to your early reply. Thank you. Sincerely, Gordon A. Watts gordon_watts@telus.net Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee |
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