Office of the Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to LA FOIP, Chapter 6, Protection of Privacy. Updated 27 February 2023. 203 Public interest means the interest of the general public or of a group of individuals. It does not include the interest of only one individual.550 The purpose of a public interest override in LA FOIP (e.g., s. 18(3) and s. 28(2)(n) of LA FOIP) includes promoting democracy by increasing public participation. A local authority is not required to find that a disclosure promotes a public interest simply that disclosure is not contrary to the public interest. The test for what is “not contrary to the public interest” is different from the test for subsections 18(3) and 28(2)(n)(i) of LA FOIP, which provides for disclosure of information that is in the public interest.551 When considering whether subsection 28(2)(k) of LA FOIP can be relied upon, a local authority must consider the circumstances surrounding the request. A local authority may decide that disclosure would be contrary to the public interest based on its knowledge of risks to its clientele or the nature of the request. For example, if the requested information could be used to commit a criminal act or harm an individual or property, then it is likely contrary to the public interest to disclose the information.552 The local authority should be able to clearly identify how disclosure is not contrary to the public interest when relying on subsection 28(2)(k) of LA FOIP. 3. Is the “head” satisfied that the purpose cannot be reasonably accomplished with deidentified information? Information is in individually identifiable form if unique identifiers are attached to the information such that the information can identify a particular individual. The identifiers might be an individual’s name, address, telephone number, date of birth or social insurance number. Small population cells or contextual information may also allow for the identification of an individual.553 550 British Columbia Government Services, FOIPPA Policy Definitions at https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/services-for-government/policiesprocedures/foippa-manual/policy-definitions. Accessed December 15, 2022. 551 Service Alberta, FOIP Guidelines and Practices: 2009 Edition, Chapter 4 at p. 121. 552 Service Alberta, FOIP Guidelines and Practices: 2009 Edition, Chapter 4 at p. 121. 553 Service Alberta, FOIP Guidelines and Practices: 2009 Edition, Chapter 7 at p. 296.
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