Ontario’s Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner has put together this long, comprehensive review of changes to access-to-information and privacy across Canada between September 2001 and August 2002.

Highlights:

In the aftermath of 9/11, the government announced in October 2001 that it would spend $9.5 million on new counter-terrorism initiatives and $12 million on an emergency preparedness strategy. It then added another $9 million to this budget a week after its initial announcement. The expenditures will include:

* $2.5 million a year, as well as a special one-time amount of $1.4 million, to improve the intelligence-gathering capabilities of Criminal Intelligence Service Ontario;

* $1 million per year and 8 new officers to expand the mandate of the new provincial Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement squad to include targeting individuals who are illegally in the province;

* $600,000 to develop specialized capacities at the Centre for Forensic Sciences, including DNA testing on a larger scale than previously carried out.

The government also passed the Vital Statistics Statute Law Amendment Act to increase the security of vital documents such as birth certificates. The amendments were given Royal Assent in the legislature on December 5, 2001. They increase the flexibility of the Registrar-General to alter registration procedures, and bestow greater discretion to be able to collect and disclose information for verification purposes or investigation of possible improprieties.

(Thanks Cla)

[via Boing Boing]