O’Grady v. Canada (Attorney General)

O’Grady v. Canada (Attorney General)
Court (s) Database
Federal Court Decisions
Date
2017-02-10
Neutral citation
2017 FC 167
File numbers
T-2587-14
Decision Content
Date: 20170210
Docket: T-2587-14
Citation: 2017 FC 167
Ottawa, Ontario, February 10, 2017
PRESENT: The Honourable Mr. Justice Russell
BETWEEN:
KELLY A. O’GRADY
Applicant
and
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA
Respondent
JUDGMENT AND REASONS
I. INTRODUCTION
[1] This is an application under s 18.1 of the Federal Courts Act, RSC 1985, c F-7 [Federal Courts Act] for judicial review of a decision of the Chief of Statistics, dated January 7, 2011 [Letter of Agreement], whereby Statistics Canada entered into an agreement with McGill University’s Faculty of Medicine [McGill] to conduct a study examining perinatal outcomes in Canada.
II. BACKGROUND
[2] Statistics Canada is a statistical agency with a mandate to collect, analyze, abstract, and publish statistical information related to the social and general activities and conditions of Canadians. As part of this mandate, a census of Canada’s population is taken every five years, which is performed via a mandatory long-form or short-form questionnaire. In its analysis, Statistics Canada employs record linkages, which combine two or more micro-records to form a composite record. The use of record linkages is performed in a manner that minimizes privacy intrusions, requires approval from Statistics Canada’s Executive Management Board, and requires informing the public of such usage.
[3] In 2011, Statistics Canada and McGill entered into a Letter of Agreement to conduct a study that would assess infant mortality and newborn health by examining perinatal outcomes in Canada according to risk factors related to socioeconomic position, ethno-cultural background, and environmental exposure [Study]. In connection with the Study, record linkages were used to link information from the national birth record database and the 1996 and 2006 censuses. In order to minimize the privacy intrusion, the record linkages were performed in accordance with s 6 of the Statistics Act, RSC 1985, c S-19 [Statistics Act] by Statistics Canada employees, or deemed employees, and the composite records were stripped of direct personal identifiers before they were made accessible to McGill. The composite records were also restricted to Statistics Canada’s premises. Additionally, the usage of the record linkages was publicly posted on the Statistics Canada website.
[4] The criteria for inclusion in the Study included persons who were born between 1985 and 2010 to a Canadian mother, under which approximately 9.5 million individuals qualified. Since the Applicant gave birth in Ontario between 1986 and 1996, her census information could have qualified for usage in the Study. However, there was an issue with data quality concerns and Ontario birth records between 1994 and 1996, including the Applicant’s, were excluded from the Study.
[5] On May 24, 2012, the Applicant filed a complaint with the Privacy Commissioner alleging that Statistics Canada had contravened the use provisions of the Privacy Act, RSC, 1985, c P-21 [Privacy Act] when her census information was linked with the birth records for use in the Study without her consent.
[6] A decision sent by the Privacy Commissioner to the Applicant by letter dated November 21, 2014 determined that the Applicant’s personal information had not been improperly used by Statistics Canada.
[7] The Privacy Commissioner agreed that the Applicant’s census information met the definition of personal information, as defined by s 3 of the Statistics Act. Additionally, the Privacy Commissioner found that usage of census information in the Study was beyond the scope of the purposes for which it was collected, which is prohibited under s 7 of the Statistics Act. However, there was no evidence to suggest that the Applicant’s information had actually been used in the Study as her information had been excluded. Furthermore, even if the Applicant’s information had been used, Statistics Canada had the authority to do so under the Statistics Act. Consequently, the Privacy Commissioner found that the Applicant’s complaint was not well-founded.
III. DECISION UNDER REVIEW
[8] Statistics Canada made a decision to enter into a Letter of Agreement with McGill to assess infant mortality and newborn health by examining perinatal outcomes in Canada according to risk factors related to socioeconomic position, ethno-cultural background, and environmental exposure. Under the agreement, McGill would pay $380,000 to Statistics Canada to perform record linkages and analyze census information. The record linkages would involve the use of birth records in the two years prior to 1996 and 2006 and would be conducted by Statistics Canada employees or deemed employees at Statistics Canada’s premises. The Applicant is seeking review of this agreement.
IV. ISSUES
[9] The Applicant submits that the following are at issue in this application:
What is the appropriate standard of review?
Did the decision-maker exercise his discretion in a manner that violated s 18.1(2) of the Statistics Act?
Does the Applicant have standing to seek judicial review?
What is the appropriate remedy?
[10] The Respondent submits that, in addition to the Applicant’s submitted issues, the following are also at issue in this application:
Does the Court have jurisdiction?
If so, was the Privacy Commissioner’s non-binding finding reasonable?
V. STANDARD OF REVIEW
[11] The Supreme Court of Canada in Dunsmuir v New Brunswick, 2008 SCC 9 [Dunsmuir] held that a standard of review analysis need not be conducted in every instance. Instead, where the standard of review applicable to a particular question before the court is settled in a satisfactory manner by past jurisprudence, the reviewing court may adopt that standard of review. Only where this search proves fruitless, or where the relevant precedents appear to be inconsistent with new developments in the common law principles of judicial review, must the reviewing court undertake a consideration of the four factors comprising the standard of review analysis: Agraira v Canada (Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness), 2013 SCC 36 at para 48.
[12] The Applicant submits that the standard of review is correctness. She says that the central issue is whether the decision-maker, a government official rendering an administrative decision, exercised discretion in a manner that violated the Statistics Act and failed to comply with the Privacy Act. She says these are questions of law and should be reviewed under the correctness standard.
[13] The Respondent submits that if the Privacy Commissioner’s non-binding report of findings is reviewable, the standard should be reasonableness: Alberta (Information and Privacy Commissioner) v Alberta Teacher’s Association, 2011 SCC 61 [Alberta] at paras 48-55.
[14] The Court is not here reviewing the Privacy Commissioner’s decision. As the Applicant clarified and confirmed at the hearing before me, she seeks review of the Chief of Statistics’ decision to enter into the agreement with McGill that resulted in the Study. This gives rise to questions of mixed fact and law and is reviewable on a standard of reasonableness.
[15] When reviewing a decision on the standard of reasonableness, the analysis will be concerned with “the existence of justification, transparency and intelligibility within the decision-making process [and also with] whether the decision falls within a range of possible, acceptable outcomes which are defensible in respect of the facts and law.” See Dunsmuir, above, at para 47, and Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) v Khosa, 2009 SCC 12 at para 59. Put another way, the Court should intervene only if the Decision was unreasonable in the sense that it falls outside the “range of possible, acceptable outcomes which are defensible in respect of the facts and law.”
VI. STATUTORY PROVISIONS
[16] The following provisions from the Federal Courts Act are relevant in this proceeding:
Extraordinary remedies, federal tribunals
Recours extraordinaires : offices fédéraux
18 (1) Subject to section 28, the Federal Court has exclusive original jurisdiction
18 (1) Sous réserve de l’article 28, la Cour fédérale a compétence exclusive, en première instance, pour :
(a) to issue an injunction, writ of certiorari, writ of prohibition, writ of mandamus or writ of quo warranto, or grant declaratory relief, against any federal board, commission or other tribunal; and
a) décerner une injonction, un bref de certiorari, de mandamus, de prohibition ou de quo warranto, ou pour rendre un jugement déclaratoire contre tout office fédéral;
(b) to hear and determine any application or other proceeding for relief in the nature of relief contemplated by paragraph (a), including any proceeding brought against the Attorney General of Canada, to obtain relief against a federal board, commission or other tribunal.
b) connaître de toute demande de réparation de la nature visée par l’alinéa a), et notamment de toute procédure engagée contre le procureur général du Canada afin d’obtenir réparation de la part d’un office fédéral.
…
…
Powers of Federal Court
Pouvoirs de la Cour fédérale
18.1 (3) On an application for judicial review, the Federal Court may
18.1 (3) Sur présentation d’une demande de contrôle judiciaire, la Cour fédérale peut :
(a) order a federal board, commission or other tribunal to do any act or thing it has unlawfully failed or refused to do or has unreasonably delayed in doing; or
a) ordonner à l’office fédéral en cause d’accomplir tout acte qu’il a illégalement omis ou refusé d’accomplir ou dont il a retardé l’exécution de manière déraisonnable;
(b) declare invalid or unlawful, or quash, set aside or set aside and refer back for determination in accordance with such directions as it considers to be appropriate, prohibit or restrain, a decision, order, act or proceeding of a federal board, commission or other tribunal.
b) déclarer nul ou illégal, ou annuler, ou infirmer et renvoyer pour jugement conformément aux instructions qu’elle estime appropriées, ou prohiber ou encore restreindre toute décision, ordonnance, procédure ou tout autre acte de l’office fédéral.
[17] The following provisions from the Federal Court Rules, SOR/98-106 [Rules] are relevant in this proceeding:
Limited to single order
Limites
302 Unless the Court orders otherwise, an application for judicial review shall be limited to a single order in respect of which relief is sought.
302 Sauf ordonnance contraire de la Cour, la demande de contrôle judiciaire ne peut porter que sur une seule ordonnance pour laquelle une réparation est demandée.
[18] The following provisions from the Statistics Act are relevant in this proceeding:
Oath of office
Serment professionnel
6 (1) The Chief Statistician and every person employed or deemed to be employed pursuant to this Act shall, before entering on his duties, take and subscribe the following oath or solemn affirmation:
6 (1) Le statisticien en chef et toute personne employée ou réputée être employée en application de la présente loi, avant d’entrer en fonctions, prêtent le serment, ou font l’affirmation solennelle, qui suit :
I, , do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully and honestly fulfil my duties as an employee of Statistics Canada in conformity with the requirements of the Statistics Act, and of all rules and instructions thereunder and that I will not without due authority in that behalf disclose or make known any matter or thing that comes to my knowledge by reason of my employment.
Je, , jure (ou affirme) solennellement que j’exercerai fidèlement et honnêtement mes fonctions d’employé de Statistique Canada en conformité avec les prescriptions de la Loi sur la statistique, ainsi que toutes règles et instructions établies sous son régime, et que je ne révélerai ni ne ferai connaître, sans y avoir été dûment autorisé(e), rien de ce qui parviendra à ma connaissance du fait de mon emploi.
Attestation
Attestation
(2) The oath or solemn affirmation set out in subsection (1) shall be taken before such person, and returned and recorded in such manner, as the Minister my direct.
(2) Le serment ou l’affirmation solennelle énoncés au paragraphe (1) sont prêtés devant la personne que le ministre peut désigner, et rapportés et enregistrés de la manière que celui-ci peut prescrire.
Incorporated contractors
Personnes morales parties à un contrat
(3) Where a person retained under contract to perform special services for the Minister pursuant to this Act is a body corporate, the chief executive officer thereof and such other officers, employees and agents thereof as are used to perform the special services shall, before entering on any of the duties required under the contract, take and subscribe the following oath or solemn affirmation:
(3) Les dirigeants, notamment le premier dirigeant, ainsi que les employés et mandataires d’une personne morale retenue par contrat pour accomplir pour le ministre des services spéciaux en application de la présente loi, avant d’exercer les fonctions que prévoit ce contrat, prêtent le serment, ou font l’affirmation solennelle, qui suit :
I, , do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully and honestly fulfil my duties as an employee of (name body corporate) in respect of my employment in carrying out (identify here contract with Minister) in conformity with the requirements of the Statistics Act, and of all rules and instructions thereunder and that I will not without due authority in that behalf disclose or make known any matter or thing that comes to my knowledge by reason of my employment as described herein.
Je, , jure (ou affirme) solennellement que j’exercerai fidèlement et honnêtement mes fonctions d’employé de (nom de la personne morale) en ce qui concerne les fonctions stipulées au (indiquer ici de quel contrat administratif il s’agit) en conformité avec les prescriptions de la Loi sur la statistique, ainsi que toutes règles et instructions établies sous son régime, et que je ne révélerai ni ne ferai connaître, sans y avoir été dûment autorisé(e), rien de ce qui parviendra à ma connaissance du fait de mon emploi.
Attestation
Attestation
(4) The oath or solemn affirmation set out in subsection (3) shall be taken before such person, and returned and recorded in such manner, as the Minister may direct.
(4) Le serment ou l’affirmation solennelle énoncés au paragraphe (3) sont prêtés devant la personne que le ministre peut désigner, et rapportés et enregistrés de la manière que celui-ci peut prescrire.
…
…
Prohibition against divulging information
Protection des renseignements
17 (1) Except for the purpose of communicating information in accordance with any conditions of an agreement made under section 11 or 12 and except for the purposes of a prosecution under this Act but subject to this section,
17 (1) Sous réserve des autres dispositions du présent article et sauf pour communiquer des renseignements conformément aux modalités des accords conclus en application des articles 11 ou 12 ou en cas de poursuites engagées en vertu de la présente loi :
…
…
(b) no person who has been sworn under section 6 shall disclose or knowingly cause to be disclosed, by any means, any information obtained under this Act in such a manner that it is possible from the disclosure to relate the particulars obtained from any individual return to any identifiable individual person, business or organization.
b) aucune personne qui a été assermentée en vertu de l’article 6 ne peut révéler ni sciemment faire révéler, par quelque moyen que ce soit, des renseignements obtenus en vertu de la présente loi de telle manière qu’il soit possible, grâce à ces révélations, de rattacher à un particulier, à une entreprise ou à une organisation identifiables les détails obtenus dans un relevé qui les concerne exclusivement.
Exception to prohibition
Exception à l’interdiction
17 (2) The Chief Statistician may, by order, authorize the following information to be disclosed:
17 (2) Le statisticien en chef peut, par arrêté, autoriser la révélation des renseignements suivants :
(a) information collected by persons, organizations or departments for their own purposes and communicated to Statistics Canada before or after May 1, 1971, but that information when communicated to Statistics Canada shall be subject to the same secrecy requirements to which it was subject when collected and may only be disclosed by Statistics Canada in the manner and to the extent agreed on by the collector thereof and the Chief Statistician;
a) les renseignements recueillis par des personnes, des organisations ou des ministères, pour leur propre usage, et communiqués à Statistique Canada avant ou après le 1 er mai 1971; toutefois, ces renseignements sont assujettis, lorsqu’ils ont été communiqués à Statistique Canada, aux prescriptions concernant le secret auxquelles ils étaient assujettis lorsqu’ils ont été recueillis et ils ne peuvent être révélés par Statistique Canada que de la manière et dans la mesure où en sont convenus ceux qui les ont recueillis et le statisticien en chef;
(b) information relating to a person or organization in respect of which disclosure is consented to in writing by the person or organization concerned;
b) les renseignements ayant trait à une personne ou à une organisation, lorsque cette personne ou organisation donne, par écrit, son consentement à leur révélation;
(c) information relating to a business in respect of which disclosure is consented to in writing by the owner for the time being of the business;
c) les renseignements ayant trait à une entreprise, lorsque celui qui à ce moment-là en est le propriétaire donne, par écrit, son consentement à leur révélation;
(d) information available to the public under any statutory or other law;
d) les renseignements mis à la disposition du public en vertu d’une loi ou de toute autre règle de droit;
(e) information relating to any hospital, mental institution, library, educational institution, welfare institution or other similar non-commercial institution except particulars arranged in such a manner that it is possible to relate the particulars to any individual patient, inmate or other person in the care of any such institution;
e) les renseignements ayant trait à un hôpital, un établissement pour malades mentaux, une bibliothèque, un établissement d’enseignement, un établissement d’assistance sociale ou autre établissement non commercial du même genre, à l’exception des détails présentés de telle façon qu’elle permettrait à n’importe qui de les rattacher à un malade, un pensionnaire ou une autre personne dont s’occupe un tel établissement;
(f) information in the form of an index or list of individual establishments, firms or businesses, showing any, some or all of the following in relation to them:
f) les renseignements revêtant la forme d’un index ou d’une liste, relativement à des établissements particuliers, ou des firmes ou entreprises particulières, indiquant l’un ou plusieurs des éléments suivants:
(i) their names and addresses,
(i) leurs noms et adresses,
(ii) the telephone numbers at which they may be reached in relation to statistical matters,
(ii) les numéros de téléphone où les joindre relativement à des données statistiques,
(iii) the official language in which they prefer to be addressed in relation to statistical matters,
(iii) la langue officielle qu’ils préfèrent utiliser relativement à des données statistiques,
(iv) the products they produce, manufacture, process, transport, store, purchase or sell, or the services they provide, in the course of their business, or
(iv) les produits obtenus, manufacturés, fabriqués, préparés, transportés, entreposés, achetés ou vendus par eux, ou les services qu’ils fournissent au cours de leurs activités,
(v) whether they are within specific ranges of numbers of employees or persons engaged by them or constituting their work force; and
(v) s’ils se rangent dans des catégories déterminées quant au nombre des employés ou des personnes qu’ils engagent ou qui constituent leur main d’œuvre;
(g) information relating to any carrier or public utility.
g) les renseignements ayant trait à un transporteur ou à une entreprise d’utilité publique.
Information is privileged
Renseignements protégés
18 (1) Except for the purposes of a prosecution under this Act, any return made to Statistics Canada pursuant to this Act and any copy of the return in the possession of the respondent is privileged and shall not be used as evidence in any proceedings whatever.
18 (1) Sauf dans des poursuites engagées en vertu de la présente loi, tout relevé transmis à Statistique Canada en application de la présente loi et toute copie du relevé se trouvant en la possession de l’intéressé, sont protégés et ne peuvent servir de preuve dans aucune procédure quelle qu’elle soit.
(2) No person sworn under section 6 shall by an order of any court, tribunal or other body be required in any proceedings whatever to give oral testimony or to produce any return, document or record with respect to any information obtained in the course of administering this Act.
(2) Aucune personne assermentée en vertu de l’article 6 ne peut être requise, par ordonnance d’un tribunal ou d’un autre organisme, dans quelque procédure que ce soit, de faire une déposition orale ni de produire un relevé, un document ou des archives ayant trait à des renseignements obtenus dans le cadre de l’application de la présente loi.
(3) This section applies in respect of any information that Statistics Canada is prohibited by this Act from disclosing or that may only be disclosed pursuant to an authorization under subsection 17(2).
(3) Le présent article s’applique à l’égard des renseignements que la présente loi interdit à Statistique Canada de révéler ou qui ne peuvent être révélés qu’en conformité avec une autorisation donnée en vertu du paragraphe 17(2).
Census taken between 1910 and 2005
Recensements faits entre 1910 et 2005
18.1 (1) The information contained in the returns of each census of population taken between 1910 and 2005 is no longer subject to sections 17 and 18 ninety-two years after the census is taken.
18.1 (1) Les articles 17 et 18 cessent de s’appliquer aux renseignements contenus dans les relevés de tout recensement de la population fait entre 1910 et 2005 quatre-vingt-douze ans après la tenue du recensement.
Census in 2006 or later
Recensements faits à partir de 2006
(2) The information contained in the returns of each census of population taken in 2006 or later is no longer subject to sections 17 and 18 ninety-two years after the census is taken, but only if the person to whom the information relates consents, at the time of the census, to the release of the information ninety-two years later.
(2) La même règle s’applique à l’égard de tout recensement de la population fait en 2006 ou par la suite, mais seulement si la personne visée par les renseignements consent, lors du recensement, à ce que ceux-ci cessent d’être protégés quatre-vingt-douze ans plus tard.
Library and Archives of Canada
Bibliothèque et Archives du Canada
(3) When sections 17 and 18 cease to apply to information referred to in subsection (1) or (2), the information shall be placed under the care and control of the Library and Archives of Canada.
(3) Lorsque les articles 17 et 18 cessent de s’appliquer aux renseignements visés aux paragraphes (1) et (2), ceux-ci sont placés sous la garde et la responsabilité de Bibliothèque et Archives du Canada.
[19] The following provisions from the Privacy Act are relevant in this proceeding:
3 In this Act,
3 Les définitions qui suivent s’appliquent à la présente loi.
…
…
personal information means information about an identifiable individual that is recorded in any form including, without restricting the generality of the foregoing,
renseignements personnels Les renseignements, quels que soient leur forme et leur support, concernant un individu identifiable, notamment :
(a) information relating to the race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age or marital status of the individual,
a) les renseignements relatifs à sa race, à son origine nationale ou ethnique, à sa couleur, à sa religion, à son âge ou à sa situation de famille;
(b) information relating to the education or the medical, criminal or employment history of the individual or information relating to financial transactions in which the individual has been involved,
b) les renseignements relatifs à son éducation, à son dossier médical, à son casier judiciaire, à ses antécédents professionnels ou à des opérations financières auxquelles il a participé;
(c) any identifying number, symbol or other particular assigned to the individual,
c) tout numéro ou symbole, ou toute autre indication identificatrice, qui lui est propre;
(d) the address, fingerprints or blood type of the individual,
d) son adresse, ses empreintes digitales ou son groupe sanguin;
(e) the personal opinions or views of the individual except where they are about another individual or about a proposal for a grant, an award or a prize to be made to another individual by a government institution or a part of a government institution specified in the regulations,
e) ses opinions ou ses idées personnelles, à l’exclusion de celles qui portent sur un autre individu ou sur une proposition de subvention, de récompense ou de prix à octroyer à un autre individu par une institution fédérale, ou subdivision de celle-ci visée par règlement;
(f) correspondence sent to a government institution by the individual that is implicitly or explicitly of a private or confidential nature, and replies to such correspondence that would reveal the contents of the original correspondence,
f) toute correspondance de nature, implicitement ou explicitement, privée ou confidentielle envoyée par lui à une institution fédérale, ainsi que les réponses de l’institution dans la mesure où elles révèlent le contenu de la correspondance de l’expéditeur;
(g) the views or opinions of another individual about the individual,
g) les idées ou opinions d’autrui sur lui;
(h) the views or opinions of another individual about a proposal for a grant, an award or a prize to be made to the individual by an institution or a part of an institution referred to in paragraph (e), but excluding the name of the other individual where it appears with the views or opinions of the other individual, and
h) les idées ou opinions d’un autre individu qui portent sur une proposition de subvention, de récompense ou de prix à lui octroyer par une institution, ou subdivision de celle-ci, visée à l’alinéa e), à l’exclusion du nom de cet autre individu si ce nom est mentionné avec les idées ou opinions;
(i) the name of the individual where it appears with other personal information relating to the individual or where the disclosure of the name itself would reveal information about the individual,
i) son nom lorsque celui-ci est mentionné avec d’autres renseignements personnels le concernant ou lorsque la seule divulgation du nom révélerait des renseignements à son sujet;
but, for the purposes of sections 7, 8 and 26 and section 19 of the Access to Information Act, does not include
toutefois, il demeure entendu que, pour l’application des articles 7, 8 et 26, et de l’article 19 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information, les renseignements personnels ne comprennent pas les renseignements concernant :
(j) information about an individual who is or was an officer or employee of a government institution that relates to the position or functions of the individual including,
j) un cadre ou employé, actuel ou ancien, d’une institution fédérale et portant sur son poste ou ses fonctions, notamment :
(i) the fact that the individual is or was an officer or employee of the government institution,
(i) le fait même qu’il est ou a été employé par l’institution,
(ii) the title, business address and telephone number of the individual,
(ii) son titre et les adresse et numéro de téléphone de son lieu de travail,
(iii) the classification, salary range and responsibilities of the position held by the individual,
(iii) la classification, l’éventail des salaires et les attributions de son poste,
(iv) the name of the individual on a document prepared by the individual in the course of employment, and
(iv) son nom lorsque celui-ci figure sur un document qu’il a établi au cours de son emploi,
(v) the personal opinions or views of the individual given in the course of employment,
(v) les idées et opinions personnelles qu’il a exprimées au cours de son emploi;
(k) information about an individual who is or was performing services under contract for a government institution that relates to the services performed, including the terms of the contract, the name of the individual and the opinions or views of the individual given in the course of the performance of those services,
k) un individu qui, au titre d’un contrat, assure ou a assuré la prestation de services à une institution fédérale et portant sur la nature de la prestation, notamment les conditions du contrat, le nom de l’individu ainsi que les idées et opinions personnelles qu’il a exprimées au cours de la prestation;
(l) information relating to any discretionary benefit of a financial nature, including the granting of a licence or permit, conferred on an individual, including the name of the individual and the exact nature of the benefit, and
l) des avantages financiers facultatifs, notamment la délivrance d’un permis ou d’une licence accordés à un individu, y compris le nom de celui-ci et la nature précise de ces avantages;
(m) information about an individual who has been dead for more than twenty years;
m) un individu décédé depuis plus de vingt ans.
Use of personal information
Usage des renseignements personnels
7 Personal information under the control of a government institution shall not, without the consent of the individual to whom it relates, be used by the institution except
7 À défaut du consentement de l’individu concerné, les renseignements personnels relevant d’une institution fédérale ne peuvent servir à celle-ci :
(a) for the purpose for which the information was obtained or compiled by the institution or for a use consistent with that purpose; or
a) qu’aux fins auxquelles ils ont été recueillis ou pré- parés par l’institution de même que pour les usages qui sont compatibles avec ces fins;
(b) for a purpose for which the information may be disclosed to the institution under subsection 8(2).
b) qu’aux fins auxquelles ils peuvent lui être communiqués en vertu du paragraphe 8(2).
…
…
Where personal information may be disclosed
Cas d’autorisation
8 (2) Subject to any other Act of Parliament, personal information under the control of a government institution may be disclosed
8 (2) Sous réserve d’autres lois fédérales, la communication des renseignements personnels qui relèvent d’une institution fédérale est autorisée dans les cas suivants :
(a) for the purpose for which the information was obtained or compiled by the institution or for a use consistent with that purpose;
a) communication aux fins auxquelles ils ont été recueillis ou préparés par l’institution ou pour les usages qui sont compatibles avec ces fins;
…
…
Index of personal information
Publication du répertoire
11 (1) The designated Minister shall cause to be published on a periodic basis not less frequently than once each year, an index of
11 (1) Le ministre désigné fait publier, selon une périodicité au moins annuelle, un répertoire :
(a) all personal information banks setting forth, in respect of each bank,
a) d’une part, de tous les fichiers de renseignements personnels, donnant, pour chaque fichier, les indications suivantes :
…
…
(iv) a statement of the purposes for which personal information in the bank was obtained or compiled and a statement of the uses consistent with those purposes for which the information is used or disclosed,
(iv) l’énumération des fins auxquelles les renseignements personnels qui y sont versés ont été recueillis ou préparés de même que l’énumération des usages, compatibles avec ces fins, auxquels les renseignements sont destinés ou pour lesquels ils sont communiqués,
…
…
Review by Federal Court where access refused
Révision par la Cour fédérale dans les cas de refus de communication
41 Any individual who has been refused access to personal information requested under subsection 12(1) may, if a complaint has been made to the Privacy Commissioner in respect of the refusal, apply to the Court for a review of the matter within forty-five days after the time the results of an investigation of the complaint by the Privacy Commissioner are reported to the complainant under subsection 35(2) or within such further time as the Court may, either before or after the expiration of those forty five days, fix or allow.
41 L’individu qui s’est vu refuser communication de renseignements personnels demandés en vertu du paragraphe 12(1) et qui a déposé ou fait déposer une plainte à ce sujet devant le Commissaire à la protection de la vie privée peut, dans un délai de quarante-cinq jours suivant le compte rendu du Commissaire prévu au paragraphe 35(2), exercer un recours en révision de la décision de refus devant la Cour. La Cour peut, avant ou après l’expiration du délai, le proroger ou en autoriser la prorogation.
VII. ARGUMENTS
A. Applicant
(1) Violation of the Statistics Act
[20] The Applicant submits that the Chief of Statistics exercised discretion in a manner that violated s 18.1(2) of the Statistics Act.
[21] She says the Statistics Act and Privacy Act should be considered together as they contain overlapping responsibilities. Section 18.1 of the Statistics Act provides rules for how census information can be shared, with a clear distinction between census information collected pre- and post-2006. Under s 8(2)(a) of the Privacy Act, government institutions may only disclose personal information without consent for the purposes for which the information was obtained and compiled. According to the Privacy Commissioner’s Report of Findings, usage of the 2006 census for the Study “went beyond the scope of its original purposes.” Thus, in the absence of consent, the Letter of Agreement is a violation of the Privacy Act.
[22] The Applicant also submits that Statistics Canada’s method of obtaining consent from the public to use census information in the Study was not compliant with the consent provisions in the Privacy Act and Statistics Act. A single-page summary of the Study on the Statistics Canada website is an inadequate method to inform the public, considering that people first needed to be aware of the Study and it was the only means of notifying the public.
[23] Furthermore, the information provided in the online notice was insufficient to allow the public to provide consent. First, the online notice failed to provide a complete and balanced discussion to enable an informed judgment on the usage of record linking, as it was not stated that indirect identifiers had a possible risk of revealing the participants’ identities. In the present case, postal code information remained on the final linked product, allowing individual participants and households to be identified. Second, the online notice did not reveal that McGill had been given exceptional permission to link the participants’ directly identifiable information with other personal and sensitive data, thereby providing McGill with unscreened access to personal and sensitive census information.
[24] Statistics Canada justified the exemption of the Study from ethical commitments and legal requirements on the basis that it was not feasible to obtain consent from all participants and that the purpose of the Study furthered the public good. However, the Applicant submits that Statistics Canada erred when it rationalized the decision not to obtain consent based on the public good. It should have relied on s 8(2) (a) of the Privacy Act to decide whether usage of the 2006 census constituted an inconsistent and improper use. Statistics Canada also ignored the conflict of interest attached to the decision, as both Statistics Canada and McGill benefited from the Letter of Agreement. The use of record linking from the 2006 census to obtain the information used in the Study rather than actively recruiting participants provided substantial benefits to McGill. First, there was a substantial cost saving, as collecting new data would be “practically infeasible.” Second, the usage of existing datasets reduced the potential bias and improved the Study’s reliability. Similarly, there was also a substantial cost savings associated with Statistics Canada not having to contact all the participants to obtain consent.
[25] The legislative history of the Statistics Act demonstrates that Parliament had an intention to balance the right to access and the right of individuals to control their personal information, with informed consent viewed as a key principle of privacy protection that should be afforded to all. This is evident in the introduction of s 18.1 of the Statistics Act, which outlines the permitted usage of census information and differentiates between censuses performed between 1910 to 2005 and 2006 onwards. Consequently, Statistics Canada had an obligation to administer its program in a manner that would allow Canadians to change their responses to the consent question at any time during the 92-year period. In exercising its discretion to override the exemption clause on consent in s 18.1(2), Statistics Canada erred in law.
[26] Under s 17(2)(b) of the Statistics Act, the Chief of Statistics is permitted to release certain types of identifiable personal information if written consent is obtained. However, the Applicant submits that this exemption does not supersede the protections provided in s 18.1(2) without express consent, which was not obtained in this case. The Applicant and other participants in the 2006 census should be treated as persons whose census information is not subject to the s 17(2)(b) exemption since there is nothing in the Statistics Act that allows Statistics Canada to dispense with the mandatory consent requirements of s 18.1(2), even if statutory approval processes are applicable to the Study. Furthermore, the Privacy Act does not allow Statistics Canada to contract out an individual’s consent to disclose information to the Chief of Statistics: see Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board v Canada (Minister of Agriculture), 2011 FC 1432.
[27] Furthermore, the Applicant cites Bill C-626 as support for Parliament’s intention to address a gap in regulation of the care and control of the census. Although the bill was voted down, it defined the long-form census as one that “conforms, in length and scope and with such modifications as changing circumstances require—including new sources of data or data collection practices—, to the long form census…,” which suggests that there is a gap in the current legislation. Additionally, since the current Statistics Act does not include such phrases, it suggests that the creation of a longitudinal census for administration purposes was not something that Parliament envisioned at the time the Statistics Act was last amended. Finally, the fact that Bill C-626 was voted down demonstrates that the government was sympathetic on principle to an outcome favourable to the Applicant.
(2) Standing
[28] The Applicant submits that she has standing to seek judicial review of the Letter of Agreement, and that the matter of whether or not her personal information from the 2006 census was included in the Study should not be used as a basis for the determination of standing.
[29] The three-part test for public interest standing is met. This application for judicial review raises serious issues of statutory interpretation under th