Information & Privacy Rights in BC

One thing citizens need to know is that they do have rights where their privacy is concerned when information is collected against them. BC is governed by the
Freedom of Information & Protection of Privacy Act. First step, go to the Information & Privacy website, if you want info about yourself from the BC government, choose public Each Ministry has an Information & Privacy division.

Find the form, identify the information you require. It's a good idea to ask for "any and all" case notes, communications, which includes e-mails and name the actual parties involved. In the case of child protection complaints, or third party information, that will be severed from what is issued. However the files can form part of a civil action against whomever, in addition to the document disclosure (discovery) you can request from the other side. The same all holds true of private businesses, who you apply for information under the:
Personal Information Privacy Act

If information is held by the BC government, citizens can request a correction of the information held on themselves.

Right to request correction of personal information

29 (1) An applicant who believes there is an error or omission in his or her personal information may request the head of the public body that has the information in its custody or under its control to correct the information.

(2) If no correction is made in response to a request under subsection (1), the head of the public body must annotate the information with the correction that was requested but not made.

(3) On correcting or annotating personal information under this section, the head of the public body must notify any other public body or any third party to whom that information has been disclosed during the one year period before the correction was requested.

(4) On being notified under subsection (3) of a correction or annotation of personal information, a public body must make the correction or annotation on any record of that information in its custody or under its control.

Process

First step in doing that is to the parties involved, CC-ing the information & privacy managers of that Ministry. If that does not rectify the situation, you can proceed with a formal complaint to the Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner. It's important to follow the process, as these parties really don't like taking complaints (or sometimes releasing information that is in the individuals, or public's good).
It's also important to be able to have some evidence as to why the information is incorrect.

Accountability

There are vast breaches of information & privacy rights in this province, this article even points out how the government is breaching it's own legislation and sending a "hit list" of people (mostly journalists) who have requested information which is deemed "sensitive" or potentially "embarassing" for the government. As many know, this government is accountable to no-one and there are mistakes made concerning the rights of the public in dealing with governmental organizations all of the time, then they are hidden, covered up, documents also go missing.

This is the Whistleblower piece of the Act, I'm not sure it has any relevance, but it is included. Almost all legislation concerning employment is not really in force in BC these days. As has been demonstrated, the Campbell government aren't big fans of these little things called contracts, as Bill 29 proved.
An interesting FOI request would be how much taxpayers money has been spent in legal fees for cases, such as fighting Bill 29 all the way to the Supreme Court, or even all the civil cases that have been filed against the BC government. Let's just say they've spent A LOT of OUR $$$.


Whistle-blower protection

30.3 An employer, whether or not a public body, must not dismiss, suspend, demote, discipline, harass or otherwise disadvantage an employee of the employer, or deny that employee a benefit, because

(a) the employee, acting in good faith and on the basis of reasonable belief, has notified the minister responsible for this Act under section 30.2,

(b) the employee, acting in good faith and on the basis of reasonable belief, has disclosed to the commissioner that the employer or any other person has contravened or is about to contravene this Act,

(c) the employee, acting in good faith and on the basis of reasonable belief, has done or stated an intention of doing anything that is required to be done in order to avoid having any person contravene this Act,

(d) the employee, acting in good faith and on the basis of reasonable belief, has refused to do or stated an intention of refusing to do anything that is in contravention of this Act, or

(e) the employer believes that an employee will do anything described in paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d).