Information & Ethics committee  First, I would like to specify that the act does not set out any document exemptions, but rather exceptions that apply to information. That's why reviewing the documents takes us so long, as Ms. Emmerson pointed out. Our review is always done line-by-line. We can't decide whether

Information & Ethics committee  First of all, I would like to point out that the process works the other way around. We send the documents to other departments or to the Privy Council Office for consultation. Then they make recommendations on the exceptions they want adopted, and we always have the final say on

Information & Ethics committee  We send the unaltered documents, but we have done our own analysis prior to that. Furthermore, when you say Treasury Board, I think what you mean is the Privy Council Office.

Information & Ethics committee  For example, if we determine that certain parts of a document fall under the category of Cabinet confidence, we send the document to PCO for review. They then determine whether or not they want, or recommend, rather, that an exception be applied. We then get the document back for

Information & Ethics committee  We definitely see this as a management issue. We actually did not feel that it should have been included in the RPP this year.

Information & Ethics committee  Is this on cabinet confidence, consultations?

Information & Ethics committee  This was strictly an administrative oversight. During this period, the documents in our computer system for monitoring cases were encoded incorrectly. A code enables us to determine of which requests the Commissioner's Office should be notified. This error was realized following

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, absolutely.

Information & Ethics committee  You won't be told to just settle for what was sent to you because the Access to Information Act entitles Canadians to existing governmental documents. So, if the document is available in both languages, it will be provided in both.

Information & Ethics committee  We're not talking about a decision, per se, as we are just applying exemptions under the act. Experts from Ms. Emmerson's group make the appropriate analyses and recommendations. After that, I make the final decision on the application of the exemptions.

Information & Ethics committee  That's absolutely correct.

Information & Ethics committee  There are several of them, but each exemption has its own set of criteria. We could certainly provide you with a list.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, we already have a few databases, at the Department of the Environment, that are posted on the website and accessible to all. One of them is the National Pollutant Release Inventory, which has been referred to in the report on the open government. We're also working on creat

Information & Ethics committee  Our data shows that Canadians use the tool provided under the Access to Information Act a lot more. So, they are exercising their right. In addition, the procedure is simpler now. There has been an increase in use owing to the popularization of e-mail requests. Previously, all t

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, we do have statistics on this. By the way, the categories we have to use in our annual report are established by the Treasury Board. I have the percentages the various categories have accounted for so far this year. I apologize, but I only have the terms for you in English.