Letter to the President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami – Invitation to participate in the access to information review (May 27, 2022)

May 27, 2022

Angajuqqaaq Natan Obed, National Inuit Leader
75 Albert St., Suite 1101
Ottawa, Ontario
KIP 5E7
President@itk.ca

Dear Natan,

Since the launch of the Access to Information Review in June 2020, the Government of Canada has been advancing work and hearing from many people on this review of the Access to Information Act.

The public feedback received to date from this process was summarized in an interim “What We Heard Report” published in December 2021. I invite you to review this report as well as summaries from workshops and submissions we received from participants on our engagement portal (https://atiareview.ca/ati-review).

Indigenous engagement is ongoing. To date, my officials have benefited from submissions and bilateral meetings with National Indigenous Organizations and other Indigenous Organizations, and we are hopeful Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami will also be able to participate.

During these discussions, different issues have been raised, such as: the scope and framing of provisions related to Indigenous governments stemming from the Access to Information Act’s definition of ‘aboriginal government’, Indigenous data governance and the treatment of information obtained from Indigenous governments, as well as Indigenous peoples access to information issues more broadly.

My officials would be pleased to receive a written submission from your organization should you wish to supplement discussions to date. Discussions to date, and any other input received during the course of our engagement, will inform an Indigenous-specific “What We Heard Report” to be released in the coming months. I remain available to meet with you to have the benefit of your views on issues related to access to information, either as part of this process or more generally as they might emerge as priorities for your organization over time.

Should you or anyone else have any questions, would like more information about the process, or would like to book a meeting with the Access to Information Review team or my office, the Executive Director of the Access to Information Policy and Performance Division, Jennifer Schofield, can be reached at jennifer.schofield@tbs-sct.gc.ca to set up a discussion.

I welcome your participation and am looking forward to advancing our work on improving access to information for Indigenous peoples together.

Your sincerely, Nakurmiik,
The Honourable Mona Fortier, P.C., M.P.
c.c.: Elizabeth Ford, Executive Director, eford@itk.ca
Kathleen Tagoona, Executive Assistant, tagoona@itk.ca