Annual Report on the Privacy Act 2018-2019
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- The Public Prosecution Service of Canada
- The Commissioner of Canada Elections
- The ATIP Office
- Delegated authorities
- Interpretation of the statistical report
- Training activities
- Policies, guidelines, procedures, and initiatives
- Complaints, audits, and investigations
- Court action
- Monitoring compliance
- Material privacy breaches
- Privacy impact assessments
- Public interest disclosures
- Appendix A – Delegation Order
- Appendix B – Statistical Report on the Privacy Act
Introduction
The Privacy Act (the Act) came into force on July 1, 1983. The purpose of the Act is to protect the privacy of individuals with respect to personal information about themselves held by government institutions as well as to provide individuals with a right of access to that information.
The Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC) became subject to the Act when it was established as an independent organization on December 12, 2006, with the coming into force of the Director of Public Prosecutions Act (Part 3 of the Federal Accountability Act).
Pursuant to section 72 of the Act, this 2018-2019 Annual Report on the Act has been prepared for tabling in the House of Commons and the Senate. This Report provides an analysis of the information contained in the PPSC’s Statistical Report on the Act. In addition, it reports on emerging trends, training activities, internal policies, guidelines and procedures with respect to the PPSC’s administration of the Act.
The Public Prosecution Service of Canada
The PPSC’s mandate is set out in the Director of Public Prosecutions Act (DPPA). The DPPA empowers the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) as Deputy Attorney General of Canada to:
- Initiate and conduct federal prosecutions;
- Intervene in proceedings that raise a question of public interest that may affect the conduct of prosecutions or related investigations;
- Issue guidelines to federal prosecutors;
- Advise law enforcement agencies or investigative bodies on general matters relating to prosecutions and on particular investigations that may lead to prosecutions;
- Communicate with the media and the public on all matters that involve the initiation and conduct of prosecutions;
- Exercise the authority of the Attorney General of Canada in respect of private prosecutions; and
- Exercise any other power or carry out any other duty or function assigned by the Attorney General of Canada that is compatible with the office of the DPP.
The DPPA also empowers the DPP to:
- Initiate and conduct prosecutions under the Canada Elections Act; and
- Act, when requested by the Attorney General of Canada, in matters under the Extradition Act and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act.
The DPP has the rank and status of a deputy head of a department, and in this capacity is responsible for the management of the PPSC as a distinct governmental organization.
The Commissioner of Canada Elections
The Commissioner of Canada Elections (CCE) is responsible for ensuring compliance with and enforcement of the Canada Elections Act and the Referendum Act.
As of April 1, 2019, the CCE left the PPSC and joined the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, with the coming into force of An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act and other Acts and to make certain consequential amendments. During the 2018-2019 fiscal period, while the CCE was part of the PPSC, the Office remained operationally independent. The PPSC’s Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office processed all personal information requests and consultations regarding the CCE.
The ATIP Office
The ATIP Office holds primary responsibility for the implementation and administration of the Act. The Office deals directly with the public in relation to personal information requests, liaises with Offices of Primary Interest to prepare responses, and serves as the centre of expertise for ATIP within the PPSC.
The ATIP Office fulfills its responsibilities by:
- Processing requests for personal information in accordance with the Act, the Privacy Regulations (the Regulations) and the Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada’s (TBS) policies, directives and guidelines;
- Responding to consultations submitted by other federal institutions or other levels of government on PPSC records being considered for release;
- Providing advice to PPSC managers and employees regarding the application and interpretation of the Act, the Regulations and the TBS’s policies, directives and guidelines;
- Responding to requests received from other government institutions for the review of solicitor-client privilege in records related to criminal proceedings in which the PPSC is involved;
- Reviewing PPSC procedures and agreements to ensure that they comply with the requirements of the Act and making recommendations for amendments;
- Monitoring the PPSC’s compliance with the Act, its Regulations and TBS policies, directives and guidelines;
- Communicating with investigators of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) to resolve complaints filed against the PPSC;
- Reviewing documents relevant to proactive disclosure, such as audits and evaluations and contracts over $25,000, prior to their publication on the PPSC’s website, in order to ensure that they do not contain personal information;
- Delivering training sessions intended to familiarize PPSC's managers and employees with the requirements of the Act, its Regulations and the TBS’s policies, directives and guidelines;
- Updating the PPSC’s chapter of the federal government’s Information About Programs and Information Holdings publication (formerly known as Info Source: Sources of Government and Employee Information);
- Submitting an annual statistical report on the administration of the Act to TBS; and
- Preparing an annual report on the administration of the Act for tabling in both Houses of Parliament.
Organizational structure
The Executive Director, Corporate Planning and External Relations Division (CPERD), acts as the PPSC’s ATIP Coordinator.
During the period from April 1, 2018, to March 31, 2019, the ATIP Office comprised a Manager, a Senior Advisor, two Advisors and an ATIP Officer. Before their departure to another organization, Counsel for the CPERD provided legal advice to the ATIP Coordinator, the ATIP Office and PPSC managers on the application and interpretation of the Act and relevant case law.
During this fiscal year, the ATIP Office had the additional support of a part-time casual employee.
The following chart outlines the organizational structure of the ATIP Office in 2018-2019:
Organizational structure
Text Version
-
ATIP Coordinator
- Counsel
-
ATIP Manager
-
Senior ATIP Policy and Operations Advisor
- ATIP Officer
- ATIP Advisor
- ATIP Advisor
-
Senior ATIP Policy and Operations Advisor
Delegated Authorities
Pursuant to section 73 of the Act, the head of a government institution may designate one or more officers or employees of that institution, by order, to exercise or perform any of the powers, duties or functions of the head of the institution under the Act.
The DPP, as the head of institution,
has designated the authority to exercise the powers and perform the duties and functions conferred to her under the Act to the Executive Director, CPERD, as well as the Senior Director General, Corporate Services, and the ATIP Manager (Delegation Order in Appendix A). The ATIP Manager exercises this authority in the absence of the Executive Director, CPERD. The Senior Director General, Corporate Services, exercises this authority in the absence of both the Executive Director, CPERD, and the ATIP Manager.
Interpretation of the Statistical Report
The following section provides a summary and analysis of the information contained in the 2018-2019 Statistical Report on the Act in Appendix B of this report.
Requests received under the Act
The PPSC received 37% of its personal information requests online this fiscal year.
Further information on the new online service is available in section 8.3 (Initiatives) of this report.
The PPSC received 19 formal personal information requests in 2018-2019, 19% more requests than in the previous fiscal year.
Additionally, seven (7) requests were carried over from fiscal year 2017-2018. Altogether, the PPSC had 26 requests to process in 2018-2019.
Since its creation on December 12, 2006, the PPSC has received 175 personal information requests in total. Over time, the organization has experienced periodic, sharp increases in the number of received requests. Despite the fluctuations, the overall trend of the past 13 fiscal years suggests that the number of requests received by the PPSC is increasing.
The following chart illustrates this trend:
2006-2007 | 2007-2008 | 2008-2009 | 2009-2010 | 2010-2011 | 2011-2012 | 2012-2013 | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 9 | 7 | 17 | 8 | 13 | 16 | 21 | 11 | 14 | 23 | 16 | 19 |
Note: As the PPSC was created on December 12, 2006, data for 2006-2007 only reflects a three-month period.
Requests closed during the fiscal year
Disposition of requests
The PPSC responded to 18 formal personal information requests, which is identical to the number of requests closed in 2017-2018.
Eight (8) requests remained outstanding by March 31, 2019, and were carried forward to the next fiscal year.
The disposition of requests closed in 2018-2019 was as follows:
All Disclosed | Disclosed in part | No records exist | Request abandoned (11%) | |
---|---|---|---|---|
6% | 50% | 33 | 11% |
Of the 18 requests closed in 2018-2019, records were fully or partially disclosed in ten (10) cases. On average, 65% of requests closed over the past five (5) fiscal years have resulted in a full or partial disclosure of records to applicants.
There were no requests closed in 2017-2018 where all records were exempted or excluded. Other requests were disposed as follows:
No records exist
Six (6) requests could not be processed because relevant records did not exist under the control of the PPSC. Where possible, applicants were advised of other government institutions that may have records and were provided with contact information accordingly.
Request abandoned
Two (2) requests were abandoned by the applicants. In most abandoned cases, clarification is needed from the applicant in order to process their request. When the applicant does not provide clarification, the request is deemed as abandoned.
Number of pages processed
A single request closed during the fiscal year concerned a tax-related prosecution involving 65,759 pages.
For the 18 cases closed in 2018-2019 the PPSC processed 71,348 pages relevant to the requests, representing nearly five (5) times the number of pages from the previous fiscal year.
The PPSC ATIP Office also reviewed an additional 2,374 pages received from across the organization that were ultimately deemed as not relevant to the requests, and were therefore not included as part of the responses.
The following is a summary of the relevant pages processed by the PPSC over the last five (5) fiscal years:
2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2,634 | 1,620 | 1,475 | 15,723 | 71,348 |
Completion time
Of the requests closed in 2018-2019, 12 requests were processed within the initial 30-day statutory deadline. This is 71% more closed within the same timeframe in 2017-2018. This increase could be attributed to the overall decrease in page volume for the majority of requests closed in 2018-2019, as compared with the previous period.
The proportion of requests closed within this timeframe in the last five (5) fiscal years is as follows:
2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
75% | 70% | 75% | 39% | 67% |
Overall, the PPSC has processed 64% of the requests closed over the last five (5) fiscal years within 30 days of receipt.
The following table is a breakdown of the number of days taken to respond to requests in 2018-2019:
Completion time | Number of requests | % |
---|---|---|
1 to 15 days | 6 | 33% |
16 to 30 days | 6 | 33% |
31 to 60 days | 0 | 0% |
61 to 120 days | 1 | 6% |
121 to 180 days | 0 | 0% |
181 to 365 days | 3 | 17% |
More than 365 days | 2 | 11% |
Total | 18 | 100% |
Exemptions
An individual’s right of access to his or her personal information is subject to limited and specific exceptions. Limitations to the right of access are set out in sections 18 through 28 of the Act.
The following is a breakdown of the exemptions applied by the PPSC in 2018-2019 for closed requests:
Paragraph 19(1)(data) |
Subparagraph 22(1)(a)(i) | Subparagraph 22(1)(a)(ii) | Subparagraph 22(1)(a)(iii) | Paragraph 22(1)(b) | Paragraph 22(1)(c) | Section 26 | Section 27 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of closed requests | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 8 |
Over the last five (5) fiscal years, sections 26 [Information about another individual] and 27 [Solicitor-client privilege] of the Act have been most often invoked by the PPSC when exempting information from disclosure. This reflects the mandate of the PPSC to conduct federal prosecutions, which often involve individuals, and to provide legal advice to law enforcement agencies and investigative bodies on matters relating to prosecutions.
Exclusions
Records or parts thereof to which the Act does not apply are considered to be “excluded”. Pursuant to section 69, the Act does not apply to library or museum material preserved solely for public record or material placed in Library and Archives Canada. Records containing confidences of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada that have been in existence for less than 20 years are also excluded from the Act pursuant to section 70.
No exclusions were applied by the PPSC in 2018-2019.
Format of information released
Of the 10 requests where the PPSC fully or partially disclosed records in 2018-2019, information was released to the applicant electronically, by email or on compact disk, 80% of the time. This is a similar rate to that of the previous fiscal year.
The PPSC provided paper copies of records in response to the remaining two (2) requests at the request of the applicants.
Overall, in the last five (5) fiscal years, 59% of releases have been in electronic format, while 41% have been paper-based.
The proportion of electronic to paper-based releases of records from year to year is as follows:
2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Paper | 70% | 40% | 58% | 21% | 20% |
Electronic | 30% | 60% | 42% | 79% | 80% |
Complexity
Due to the nature of the PPSC’s work, processing requests can be challenging, and requests are regularly deemed “complex” based on a number of factors:
- Records held by the PPSC often contain information relating to criminal or regulatory investigations or prosecutions that also frequently involve other organizations at the federal, provincial or territorial level. This was the predominant factor driving complexity in one (1) request closed in 2018-2019.
- In one (1) case, the main source of complexity was a need to retrieve records from across the country.
- The applicant’s personal information is often intermixed with that of another individual. In these cases, section 26 of the Act could be applied to protect the personal information of other individuals. Intermixed personal information was the main source of complexity in eight (8) cases.
Deemed refusals
Requests that are not closed within the initial 30-day statutory deadline or within a timeframe covered by an extension provided by the Act are referred to as “deemed refusals.” Further information on the circumstances in which an extension to the original deadline is permitted by the Act is available in section 6.4 (Extensions) of this report.
Five (5) requests were closed as deemed refusals in 2018-2019, three (3) of which as a result of workload and the other two (2) due to extended consultations with other government institutions. Ultimately, the high volume of pages processed was the primary factor. Altogether, the deemed refusals involved 69,900 pages, which represents 98% of all pages processed for requests closed this fiscal year.
Requests for translation
During the 2018-2019 fiscal year, the PPSC did not receive any requests from applicants to translate records from one official language to the other.
Over the last five (5) fiscal years, the PPSC has received only one (1) request for translation, in 2014-2015. In this case, the organization granted the applicant’s request to translate records from French to English.
Requests for correction of personal information and notations
Paragraph 12(2)(a) of the Act provides every individual that is given access to their personal information the right to request correction if:
- The individual believes there is an error or omission regarding their information; and
- The information has been, is being used or is available for use for an administrative purpose (i.e., a decision-making process that directly affects the individual).
Where correction is not possible, the individual has the right to request that a notation about the error or omission be placed on the file.
There were no requests for correction of personal information or notations in 2018-2019. This has been typical of the last five (5) fiscal years.
Extensions
Paragraph 15(a) of the Act allows for an extension of the initial statutory deadline for a maximum of 30 additional days in cases where meeting the original deadline would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the government institution processing the request, or when consultations with other government institutions are necessary and cannot reasonably be completed within the original deadline.
Over the last five (5) fiscal years, the PPSC has taken, on average, five (5) extensions under the Privacy Act each year.
The PPSC took six (6) extensions to process requests closed during the 2018-2019 reporting period.
All extensions were for the maximum length permitted by the Act, four (4) of which because processing the requests within the original deadline would have interfered with the PPSC’s operations. The PPSC took the other two (2) extensions in order to conduct consultations with other government institutions.
The following table summarizes the length and reasons for the extensions:
Length of extensions | Reasons for extensions | |
---|---|---|
Paragraph 15(a)(i) - Interference with operations | Paragraph 15(a)(ii) - Consultation | |
15 days or less | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30days | 4 | 2 |
Total | 4 | 2 |
Consultations received from other institutions and organizations
Number of consultations
The PPSC received five (5) consultations from other government institutions and organizations for processing under the Act in 2018-2019. This is identical to the number in 2017-2018. Additionally, two (2) consultations were carried forward from that period. Altogether, the PPSC had seven (7) consultations to process in 2018-2019.
The PPSC has received 117 consultations in total since December 12, 2006. There was a sharp increase in the number of consultations in 2010-2011, but since then and especially in recent fiscal years, the number of consultations received by the PPSC has generally declined.
The following chart illustrates this trend:
2006-2007 | 2007-2008 | 2008-2009 | 2009-2010 | 2010-2011 | 2011-2012 | 2012-2013 | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 | 6 | 7 | 16 | 24 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 5 |
Note: As the PPSC was created on December 12, 2006, data for 2006-2007 only reflects a three-month period.
Sources of consultations
Each of the five (5) of the consultations received in 2018-2019 originated from different sources, four (4) of which were other government institutions subject to the Act: Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency, the Canada Revenue Agency, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. In particular, the latter institution has been a frequent source of consultations for the PPSC over the last five (5) fiscal years.
One (1) other consultation was sent by a provincial government institution, the Ministry of Alberta Justice and the Solicitor General.
Disposition and recommendations
The PPSC responded to all seven (7) of the consultations received or carried over to 2018-2019. As a result, no consultations were carried forward to the next fiscal year.
A total of 2,618 pages was processed, which is a significant increase from the previous fiscal year as well as other recent years. Of the total pages processed, 72% originated from the Canada Revenue Agency.
The number of pages processed each year over the last five (5) fiscal periods is as follows:
2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pages | 316 | 54 | 1,776 | 17 | 2,618 |
Of the consultations completed in 2018-2019, the PPSC recommended that the other government institutions and organizations disclose the records fully or partially in six (6) cases. The other remaining case was discontinued by the consulting institution.
Over the last five (5) fiscal years, the PPSC has never recommended full exemption of the records sent in consultation.
Completion time
Over the last five (5) fiscal years, 78% of personal information consultations were completed within 30 days of receipt.
Of the seven (7) consultations completed in 2018-2019, three (3) were completed within 15 days of receipt. For comparison, one (1) consultation was completed within the same timeframe during the previous fiscal period.
The remaining four (4) consultations closed in 2018-2019 were completed between 31 to 120 days.
Consultations on Cabinet confidences
No consultations on the application of section 70 [Cabinet confidence] of the Act were carried out during fiscal year 2018-2019.
Resources related to the Act
In the 2018-2019 fiscal year, the PPSC spent a total of $180,651 administering the Act, of which salaries accounted for 99% ($179,493) of expenditures, while goods and services accounted for the remaining 1% ($1,158).
No overtime expenditures were incurred during this period.
Training activities
One (1) formal ATIP awareness session was delivered to approximately 15 PPSC employees in 2018-2019.
ATIP personnel also provided informal learning to employees on an ad hoc basis regarding the processing of personal information requests, and regularly provided advice to PPSC officials regarding the interpretation of the Act to ensure that personal information is appropriately collected, used, disclosed and protected.
Policies, guidelines, procedures, and initiatives
ATIP governance structure
The PPSC ATIP Governance Structure was approved by the PPSC's Executive Council in October 2011. It outlines the reporting relationships within the PPSC and establishes clear responsibilities for decision-making for the purposes of administering the Act.
Information about Programs and Information Holdings
Information about Programs and Information Holdings (formerly known as Info Source: Sources of Government and Employee Information) is published on the Government of Canada’s canada.ca website. It provides information about the functions, programs, activities and related information holdings of government institutions subject to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act.
It also serves as the Government’s repository of personal information banks, which outline how personal information is collected, used, disclosed, retained and disposed of in order to administer the Government’s programs and services.
Each year, the PPSC ATIP Office updates information about the PPSC’s activities and information holdings in the publication. In 2018-2019, the PPSC registered two (2) standard personal information banks regarding personal information under its control relating to library services as well as vehicles, ship, boat and aircraft accidents.
Initiatives
As part of a pilot led by the TBS, the PPSC was one (1) of eight (8) government institutions that participated in the launch of the online request service when it went live in October 2018.
The PPSC implemented one (1) new initiative relating to privacy during the 2018-2019 fiscal year. A first for the organization, the Government of Canada’s ATIP Online Request Service now provides applicants with the opportunity to submit personal information requests to the PPSC online.
The PPSC expects to develop new and revised privacy procedures throughout the next fiscal year in preparation for the continuing modernization of ATIP digital services.
Privacy tools were also updated as required so that the organization may continue to process requests efficiently and protect personal information in compliance with the Act and related policies.
Complaints, audits, and investigations
Decisions made under the Act are subject to a two-tiered system of review. This ensures government institutions’ compliance with their privacy protection obligations as well as respect for applicants’ right of access to their personal information and fair treatment. The first level of review is a formal complaint to the OPC; the second level is an application for judicial review to the Federal Court. The PPSC reviews the outcomes of all OPC investigations and incorporates lessons learned into business processes, where appropriate.
During the 2017-2018 fiscal period, two (2) complaints were filed with the OPC against the PPSC, both of which were still under investigation as of March 31, 2019.
The PPSC also received findings or recommendations from the Commissioner in connection with two (2) other complaints carried over from previous fiscal years. All two (2) were deemed to be well-founded and resolved. The reasons are as follows:
- One (1) complaint pertained to a delay in responding to an applicant. Due to the high volume of pages processed (65,759 pages in total) as well as the complexity of the records at issue, the PPSC was unable to process the request within the statutory deadline. Once the PPSC provided the applicant with a copy of the relevant records in response to their request, the OPC considered the matter as concluded.
- One (1) complaint pertained to the application of section 26 of the Act to the records, relating to the protection of personal information belonging to individuals other than the applicant. The PPSC agreed to release some of the information to the applicant, while the OPC agreed that the application of section 26 on the remainder of the information was appropriate.
No privacy audits were undertaken by the OPC with respect to the PPSC in 2018-2019.
The following table summarizes the reasons for the complaints received by the PPSC in fiscal year 2018-2019, including those carried over from previous fiscal years, as well as the OPC’s findings for concluded investigations:
Complaints and investigationsReason for complaint | Number of complaints | Results of investigations | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Well founded | Not well founded | Discontinued | OPC has yet to issue its findings | ||
Refusal/Exemptions | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Delay | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Court action
There were no applications for judicial review filed with the Federal Court pursuant to section 41 of the Act in 2018-2019.
Monitoring compliance
The ATIP Office maintains a comprehensive statistical reporting and performance measurement system. The ATIP Manager meets with the ATIP Coordinator weekly on the status of active requests, complaints and any issues that have arisen.
The ATIP Office also provides reports to PPSC senior management on its activities, investigations and trends related to privacy on an ad hoc basis.
Material privacy breaches
A material privacy breach involves improper or unauthorized collection, use, disclosure, retention or disposal of sensitive personal information, which could reasonably be expected to cause serious injury or harm to the individual to whom it relates.
The ATIP Office received one (1) report of a material privacy breach in 2018-2019. In this case, records containing sensitive personal information were inadvertently disclosed to defence counsel and their client during legal proceedings. The PPSC took immediate steps to mitigate the breach and reviewed internal processes for improvements. The breach was also reported to the OPC and TBS, as required.
Privacy impact assessments
A Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) is a tool used to assist a government institution in meeting its privacy responsibilities with regard to the management of personal information. Institutions initiate PIAs when assessing the privacy implications of new or substantially modified programs and activities involving personal information.
No PIAs were completed by the PPSC in fiscal year 2018-2019.
Public interest disclosures
Subsection 8(2) of the Act describes the circumstances under which personal information under the control of a government institution may be disclosed without the individual’s consent.
During the 2018-2019 fiscal period, one (1) disclosure was made to federal investigative bodies for the purpose of enforcing any law in Canada, or for carrying out a lawful investigation, pursuant to paragraph 8(2)(e) of the Act.
Appendix A – Delegation order
The Director of Public Prosecutions, pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act and section 73 of the Privacy Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto to exercise the powers, duties and functions of the Director of Public Prosecutions as the head of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, under the provisions of the Acts and related regulations set out in the schedule opposite each position. This designation replaces all previous delegation orders.
Schedule
Position | Access to Information Act and Regulations | Privacy Act and Regulations |
---|---|---|
Senior Director General, Corporate Services | Full Authority | Full Authority |
Executive Director, Corporate Planning and External Relations Division | Full Authority | Full Authority |
Manager, ATIP, ATIP Office | Full Authority | Full Authority |
Dated, at the City of Ottawa, this 3rd day of October, 2018.
Kathleen Roussel
Director of Public Prosecutions
Appendix B – Statistical Report on the Privacy Act
Name of institution: Public Prosecution Service of Canada
Reporting period: 2018-04-01 to 2019-03-31
Part 1: Requests Under the Privacy Act
Number of Requests | |
---|---|
Received during reporting period | 19 |
Oustanding from previous reporting period | 7 |
Total | 26 |
Closed during reporting period | 18 |
Carried over to next reporting period | 8 |
Part 2: Requests Closed During the Reporting Period
2.1 Disposition and completion time
Disposition of requests | Completion Time | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 Days | 16 to 30 Days | 31 to 60 Days | 61 to 120 Days | 121 to 180 Days | 181 to 365 Days | More than 365 Days | Total | |
All disclosed | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Disclosed in part | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
No records exist | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Request abandoned | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 18 |
2.2 Exemptions
Section | Number of Requests |
---|---|
18(2) | 0 |
19(1)(a) | 0 |
19(1)(b) | 0 |
19(1)(c) | 0 |
19(1)(d) | 2 |
19(1)(e) | 0 |
19(1)(f) | 0 |
20 | 0 |
21 | 0 |
22(1)(a)(i) | 2 |
22(1)(a)(ii) | 1 |
22(1)(a)(iii) | 1 |
22(1)(b) | 2 |
22(1)(c) | 1 |
22(2) | 0 |
22.1 | 0 |
22.2 | 0 |
22.3 | 0 |
23(a) | 0 |
23(b) | 0 |
24(a) | 0 |
24(b) | 0 |
25 | 0 |
26 | 9 |
27 | 8 |
28 | 0 |
2.3 Exclusions
Section | Number of Requests |
---|---|
69(1)(a) | 0 |
69(1)(b) | 0 |
69.1 | 0 |
70(1)(a) | 0 |
70(1)(b) | 0 |
70(1)(c) | 0 |
70(1)(d) | 0 |
70(1)(e) | 0 |
70(1)(f) | 0 |
70.1 | 0 |
2.4 Format of information released
Disposition | Paper | Electronic | Other Formats |
---|---|---|---|
All disclosed | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 1 | 8 | 0 |
Total | 2 | 8 | 0 |
2.5 Complexity
2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed
Disposition of Requests | Number of Pages Processed | Number of Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests |
---|---|---|---|
All disclosed | 30 | 30 | 1 |
Disclosed in part | 69576 | 8042 | 9 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 1742 | 0 | 2 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 71348 | 8072 | 12 |
2.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests
Disposition | Less than 100 Pages Processed | 101-500 Pages Processed | 501-1000 Pages Processed | 1001-5000 Pages Processed | More than 5000 Pages Processed | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | |
All disclosed | 1 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 2 | 69 | 4 | 757 | 2 | 1365 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5851 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 4 | 99 | 5 | 757 | 2 | 1365 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5851 |
2.5.3 Other complexities
Disposition | Consultation Required | Legal Advice Sought | Interwoven Information | Other | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
All disclosed | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 9 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 10 |
2.6 Deemed refusals
2.6.1 Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline
Number of Requests Closed Past the Statutory Deadline | Principal Reason | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Workload | External Consultation | Internal Consultation | Other | |
5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
2.6.2 Number of days past deadline
Number of Days Past Deadline | Number of Requests Past Deadline Where No Extension WasTaken | Number of Requests Past Deadline Where An Extension Was Taken | Total |
---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
31 to 60 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
61 to 120 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
121 to 180 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
181 to 365 days | 0 | 4 | 4 |
More than 365 days | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Total | 0 | 5 | 5 |
2.7 Requests for translation
Translation Requests | Accepted | Refused | Total |
---|---|---|---|
English to French | 0 | 0 | 0 |
French to English | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Part 3: Disclosures Under Subsection 8(2) and 8(5)
Paragraph 8(2)(e) | Paragraph 8(2)(m) | Subsection 8(5) | Total |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Part 4: Requests for Correction of Personal Information and Notations
Disposition for Correction Requests Received | Number |
---|---|
Notations attached | 0 |
Requests for correction accepted | 0 |
Total | 0 |
Part 5: Extensions
5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests
Disposition of Requests Where an Extension Was Taken | 15(1)(a) Interference With Operations | 15(1)(b) Consultation | 15(1)(c) Translation or Conversion | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Section 70 | Other | |||
All disclosed | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
No records exist | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
5.2 Length of extensions
Length of Extensions | 15(1)(a) Interference with operations | 15(1)(b) Consultation | 15(1)(c) Translation purposes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Section 70 | Other | |||
1 to 15 days | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30 days | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Total | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Part 6: Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations
6.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations
Consultations | Other Government of Canada Institutions | Number of Pages to Review | Other Organizations | Number of Pages to Review |
---|---|---|---|---|
Received during reporting period | 4 | 646 | 1 | 3 |
Outstanding from the previous reporting period | 2 | 1969 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 6 | 2615 | 1 | 3 |
Closed during the reporting period | 6 | 2615 | 1 | 3 |
Pending at the end of the reporting period | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
6.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions
Recommendation | Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 Days | 16 to 30 Days | 31 to 60 Days | 61 to 120 Days | 121 to 180 Days | 181 to 365 Days | More than 365 Days | Total | |
All disclosed | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Disclosed in part | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Consult other institution | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Total | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
6.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations
Recommendation | Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 Days | 16 to 30 Days | 31 to 60 Days | 61 to 120 Days | 121 to 180 Days | 181 to 365 Days | More than 365 Days | Total | |
All disclosed | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Consult other institution | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Part 7: Completion Time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences
7.1 Requests with Legal Services
Number of Days | Fewer than 100 Pages Processed | 101-500 Pages Processed | 501-1000 Pages Processed | 1001-5000 Pages Processed | More than 5000 Pages Processed | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | |
1 to 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
31 to 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
61 to 120 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
121 to 180 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
181 to 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
More than 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
7.2 Requests with Privy Council Office
Number of Days | Fewer than 100 Pages Processed | 101-500 Pages Processed | 501-1000 Pages Processed | 1001-5000 Pages Processed | More than 5000 Pages Processed | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | |
1 to 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
31 to 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
61 to 120 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
121 to 180 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
181 to 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
More than 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Part 8: Complaints and Investigation Notices Received
Section 31 | Section 33 | Section 35 | Court action | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|
2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Part 9: Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs)
Number of PIA(s) completed | 0 |
---|
Part 10: Resources Related to the Privacy Act
10.1 Costs
Expenditures | Amount | |
---|---|---|
Salaries | $179,493 | |
Overtime | $0 | |
Goods and Services | $1,158 | |
• Professional services contracts | $0 | |
• Other | $1,158 | |
Total | $180,651 |
10.2 Human Resources
Resources | Person Years Dedicated to Privacy Activities |
---|---|
Full-time employees | 1.66 |
Part-time and casual employees | 0.39 |
Regional staff | 0.00 |
Consultants and agency personnel | 0.00 |
Students | 0.00 |
Total | 2.05 |
Note: Enter values to two decimal places.
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