Probe launched into 'muzzling' of scientists

Margaret Munro
April 2, 2013
Vancouver Sun

The federal information commissioner's office is launching a sweeping investigation into complaints the Harper government has been "muzzling" and restricting access to scientists.

Seven federal departments and agencies, from Environment Canada to the National Research Council of Canada, have been told Suzanne Legault's office plans to act on complaints about "the systematic efforts by the Government of Canada to obstruct the right of the media - and through them, the Canadian public - to timely access to government scientists."

"A notice of our intention to investigate and a summary of complaint has been sent" to the seven departments, Emily McCarthy, assistant information commissioner, says in a March 27 letter to Calvin Sandborn, legal director of the Environmental Law Centre at the University of Victoria.

The university centre and the non-profit group Democracy Watch asked Legault in February to launch an investigation arguing the Canadian public has a right to know about the science financed by tax dollars.

The two groups pointed to several instances where federal scientists have been "muzzled" and the tactics the government has been using to control discussion about everything from the oilsands to polar bears.

"With the resources of the information commissioner's office we hope to get to the bottom of it," Sandborn said.

He is also hoping "policies change so that Canadian taxpayers can get access to scientific information that they paid for."

The Canadian government should "emulate democracy to the south of us," Sandborn said, referring to U.S. government policy that "encourages" scientists to speak freely about scientific information and findings.

Canada's federal departments of the environment, fisheries and oceans, natural resources, defence, the National Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency have been notified about the investigation, McCarthy says in the letter to Sandborn.

"We have also determined that the Treasury Board Secretariat should be included in your complaint because of its role in relation to the development and implementation of government policies," McCarthy says.

The commissioner's investigation comes after years of controversy over the way the government has tightened the leash on Canada's federal scientists, who used to be encouraged to discuss their work.

In several cases, documented by Postmedia News and the Postmedia newspapers, scientists have been denied permission to speak to the media about studies on Arctic ozone loss, prehistoric floods, and in one case, snow.

The University of Victoria lawyers and Democracy Watch allege the federal Access to Information Act is being violated by government policies, practices and guidelines restricting how and when scientists can discuss their work.

Read the full article in the Vancouver Sun.

Read related articles:

• Edmonton Journal; April 19, 2013; "Closure of fisheries’ libraries called a ‘disaster’ for science"
• CBC; April 3, 2013; "Saskatoon scientist breaks silence about muzzling"
• CBC; April 1, 2013; "Scientist muzzling probed by information commissioner"
• Globe and Mail; February 20, 2013; "Groups seek formal probe into Ottawa’s ‘muzzling’ of scientists"
• iPolitics; February 7, 2013; "New policy gives government power to muzzle DFO scientists"
  
• Globe and Mail; January 7, 2013; "Unshackle government scientists and let them do their jobs"
• Bundling of news items related to muzzling of scientists from March to July 2012.