Office of the Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to FOIP, Chapter 1, Purposes and Scope of FOIP. Updated 7 March 2023 3 Both FOIP and The Local Authority Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act started out as consecutive Bills receiving first reading in the Legislative Assembly on April 19, 1991.4 On June 18, 1991, the Lieutenant Governor spoke to prorogation and stated: Widespread consultations also revealed a significant element of demand for a less partisan government, the protection of democratic rights, and the accountability of elected governments. This spring the rules of the Legislative Assembly were changed, and the first Speaker elected, to respond to the first of these concerns. The government’s comprehensive package of legislation, including The Referendum and Plebiscite Act, The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and The Local Authority Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, are reforms introduced to make government more open and allow people to play a more direct role in the government....Finally, the two freedom of information Acts provide the public with the right to know the activities of government as it touches their personal lives....5 The IPC has, in the past, also been guided by decisions of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal and the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench. In Amendt v. Canada Life Assurance Co., 1999 CanLII 12560 (SK KB) at [43], Goldenberg J. observed: The right of persons to apply for access to information in the hands of a government agency has no basis in common law. It is purely statutory. The Act is a code unto itself. The code sets out a detailed method for applications, reviews, and ultimately for appeals to the Court of Queen’s Bench. Absent compliance with the process contained therein, this Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the matter.6 In General Motors Acceptance Corp. of Canada v. Saskatchewan Government Insurance, 1993 CanLII 9128 (SK CA) at [11], the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal stated: The Act’s basic purpose reflects a general philosophy of full disclosure unless information is exempted under clearly delineated statutory language. There are specific exemptions from disclosure set forth in the Act, but these limited exemptions do not obscure the basic policy that disclosure, not secrecy is the dominant objective of the Act. That is not to say that the statutory exemptions are of little or no significance. We recognize that they are intended to have a meaningful reach and application. The Act provides for 4 SK OIPC Review Report F-2012-001/LA-2012-001 at [47]. 5 Saskatchewan Hansard, June 18, 1991, available at http://docs.legassembly.sk.ca/legdocs/Legislative%20Assembly/Hansard/21L4S/910618e.PDF. See also SK OIPC Review Reports F-2012-001/LA-2012-001 at [47] and LA-2012-003 at [27]. 6 Amendt v. Canada Life Assurance Co., 1999 CanLII 12560 (SK KB) at [43]. See also SK OIPC Review Report F-2004-003 at [7].
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